Pokemon: Adventures in Kanto and Beyond!
by healylite
Summary: After a loss at the Johto Grand Festival and participating in a few contests here and there, May wonders where the thrill of coordinating went. A hint of a new adventure brings her and Max to Vermillion City, where Ash and Alexa have just said their farewells to Iris and Cilan. Crossover with the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series in later chapters. Slight Advanceshipping.
1. Phone call with the Siblings!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Pokemon but I do adore the series to death!

**Summary**: After a loss at the Johto Grand Festival and participating in a few contests here and there, May wonders where the thrill of coordinating went. A hint of a new adventure brings her and Max to Vermillion City, where Ash and Alexa have just said their farewells to Iris and Cilan.

**My Comments**: I haven't written a fic in ages, but this was surprisingly fun! I hope the writing is okay. I'm writing it as I go along and only have a general idea of what's going to happen, but I'll try to update when I can! Hope you enjoy and thank you for reading!

Pokemon: Adventures in Kanto and Beyond!

_Chapter One: Phone Call with the Siblings_

"Hello, Ash? You have a call," said Porter, who worked at the cruise line serving the Delacor Islands. Much like the Officer Jennys and Nurse Joys, his family shared strong genetics and all enjoyed the rewarding job of being porters on the cruise line. Except his cousin, Ralph Porter. That guy became a doctor. He brought much dishonor on the family. Ralph's son, however, was turning out to be a good kid and hopefully would redeem his father's mistakes.

"A call?" repeated Ash, a little confused. He wondered who could be calling him. "Okay, I'll take it now." He put down his book (Poke-Fishing Exposed, written by a fishing legend that he happened to meet on his journey) and headed to the video-phone. The screen turned on to reveeaaallll...

Actually he wasn't sure, someone was WAY too close to the screen.

"MAY! MAY I GOT IT CONNECTED! Ash is on!"

"HEY MOVE IT OR LOSE IT BUB." May elbowed Max to the side and now both were visible.

"Mooooooooommmm, May hit me May hit me!" Max whined.

"May, be nice to your brother or I'm eating your last slice of cake," said Caroline absentmindedly from behind them.

"Wha..! No fair!" whined May. Max stuck his tongue at her.

So they must be at their dad's gym, Ash reasoned. He smiled at the siblings' familiar antics. Same old Max and May, huh. "Hey you two! How've you been?"

"Ash!" exclaimed May excitedly. At the same time, Max said, "Good going, ignoring the guy you _called!_"

May ignored Max. " We've been trying to reach you! I talked to so many Porters I lost count."

"Which isn't saying much because May can't count very high," chipped in Max.

Ash kept his friendly smile on, but he was sweatdropping already. "Yeah, there are a lot of Porters...How long were you in Petalburg City, May? Last time we talked you were coordinating in Sinnoh." He had spoken to May several times when he was traveling in Unova, and she had told him about her loss in the Johto Grand Festival. The Grand Festivals in Hoenn and Sinnoh were also over for the year, but there were several special contest events held in Sinnoh that May attended. She had told him at the time that she hasn't seen a lot of Sinnoh when she came for the Wallace Cup and wanted to explore more. Plus, her Glaceon loved the roads surrounding Snowpoint City and she also hung out with Dawn and Zoey sometimes.

"I don't know, maybe a week?" replied May thoughtfully. "There _was_ supposed to be another event in Floroma town. It's a combination of coordinating and pokemon modeling. But I don't know. I guess I'm in a bit of a slump with contests. It's just been one loss after the other. I get past the appeal round, but I just can't battle the way the judges want."

"The judges' remarks were pretty harsh last time," said Max. "Mom, Dad, and I watched it on TV."

"Wow, uh, I'm sorry to hear that. What'd they say?"

May sighed. Max glanced at her and spoke instead. "They said she battles like she's taking on a gym battle, not a contest. She's too focused on knocking the opponent out and not showin' off her pokemon's moves."

May looked frustrated. "Knocking them out is the best way to show off their moves! I don't want them to look good and get hurt!" She sighed again and fiddled with her thumbs. "It's just not fair and not fun anymore," she whined.

Max turned his palms outward and said in a defeated voice, "I keep telling her that's what contests _are_, it's not like it's a surprise."

"Yeah but get _this_!" exclaimed May, doing a complete 180 before Ash could even say words of sympathy. "I found out the coolest thing! When you're done with the cruise, you'll be in Vermillion right?"

"Yeah but I'll stop by Pallet-"

"Okay! I'll meet you in Vermillion! I have to show you something!" she said excitedly.

"Why can't you just tell me over the phone?" asked Ash suspiciously.

"Because, it's a secret!"

"What!" Ash slammed his hand on the desk the phone was on. That was a long time to be in pointless suspense.

"That's the point of a se-cret," sang May.

"She wouldn't tell me, either," Max let him know. "Anyway, how are you going to leave the gym, May?" He sighed and started to explain to Ash. "We had a dinner a few days ago in North Petalburg and mom and dad's fans went crazy, so we've been in house arrest since then."

"North Petalburg..." growled Ash under his breath, remembering their run-in with the family's fans during his Hoenn journey.

"I've got that all planned out," said May, looking very satisfied with herself. She pulled out two black suits. "We're going to sneak out!"

"Th-that's from my closet...I can come too, May?" asked Max with stars in his eyes.

"Of course you can, little brother. I already packed your stuff. Also I have this blueprint, we'll just take this passage here, and mosey on over this way. Dad's lookout and already knows the secret signal!"

"Wait, why do you have a blueprint, we live here," pointed out Max.

May shrugged. "Dad's the one who drew it." (Cut to Norman in a thumbs-up pose. "It's my secret hobby!")

"Wait...guys? Don't all the ferries run in the day time? Why would you wear those?" asked Ash.

May looked shocked and then blushed in embarrassment. "O-oh, really, who woulda thought. W-well, can't make changes to the plan now, ha ha. Ha. We'llseeyouinVermillionbye!"

The video-screen turned off instantly, and Ash screamed at the phone, "H-HEY!"


	2. Vermillion City Rendezvous!

_My comments_**: **I meant to post this a little earlier, sorry for the wait! I kept changing my mind about a lot of things, but now I'm just going to roll with it, gotta move forward! I'll try not to have too much time in between updates! I decided to make this a crossover with Pokemon Mystery Dungeon. If you didn't play the series, that's fine, it doesn't refer to anything that happened in the series. It's basically about a human who turns into a pokemon to save the pokemon world. I did reference to my characters in each of those games though, their names are Mint, Cocoa, and Toffee. This story will also have slight advanceshipping. I'm not good at writing romance so not a lot, probably mostly implied. Thank you to everyone who read/followed/favorited the story!

**_Chapter Two: Vermillion City Rendezvous!_**

Ash watched the train depart, memories floating in his mind of the adventures he had with his friends, Iris and Cilan. Someday he'd see them again, but until then, he sincerely wished them the best!

His friend Alexa put her hand on his shoulder. "It's getting late. I think it's time we head out as well."

"Right! Let's go!" Ash was starting to get excited. He gave Pikachu a wide grin, who returned it at half enthusiasm, considering they just watched their friends leave. Ash never got around to telling Pikachu about Max and May's call. He had to admit that it wasn't on his mind the whole time. A lot of things happened between then and arriving in Kanto, after all. Who could ever forget those killer bottle-cap collecting Tentacruel? And the thought of Porter being on Team Rocket's side? _Especially _that Porter thing.

But now that the reunion was happening, he just couldn't wait to see them. And some part of him wanted to keep it a surprise to Pikachu, too. He did tell Alexa, though, who was happy to meet old friends of his.

As they headed out of the train station, Alexa's phone started to ring from her bag. Her Helioptile moved from its position on the bag to her shoulder so that she could shift through it. "Oh no, where's my phone? I can't find it! I think I left it on the ship!" she panicked.

Ash paused. She reminded him of May right then. "Uh...you didn't leave it on the ship, trust me."

"Pika pika," said Pikachu from Ash's shoulder, sighing too.

"Oh, right. Haha. Here it is! Oh _no_, it's my editor. I'm a little behind on an article, ha ha. Just hang tight for a minute, Ash. I'll be quick!"

"Okay!" He figured they might be a little bit early, anyway. He leaned against the wall near the entrance of the station. Alexa paced back and forth, looking anxious as she spoke into the receiver, apparently being chewed-out by her editor. He gazed ahead, not really focusing on anything in particular. What were they like now? He talked to them a few times, but still...Did Max meet any new Pokemon? What antics did May get herself into in Johto? He tried imagining May trying to set up a tent and flopping and giving up.

"Pikachu pika?" asked Pikachu curiously.

"Oh, it's nothing buddy," he said, even though a worried expression made its way on his face.

"All done." Alexa put away her phone and wiped some sweat off of her forehead. "Phew! That was a _close_ one."

"Missed a deadline?" asked Ash, as they resumed walking.

"Yeah, I'm _really_ going to need to do that scoop at Professor Oak's lab to smooth things over with her now..." mumbled Alexa.

They passed the normal turn-off to exit town. Pikachu was confused, and jumped off of Ash's shoulder. It pointed towards a sign. "Pika pika?"

"Oh Pikachu." Ash picked up his best friend and smiled. "We're gonna make a stop first."

"Pika..." The electric mouse climbed back up Ash's shoulder and then decided to rest on his hat.

The three of them soon found themselves in front of a restaurant. A sign with big letters proudly stated "Grand Opening!" in front of the place. May hadn't been in Kanto for a while, but the fact that she knew about a new eatery opening up didn't surprise Ash in the least. It was typical of her to be in the know about these things. The place was called "Wingul Diner" and had pictures of Winguls painted all over the building. There were tables outside, where a lot of patrons ate while watching the sunset.

May and Max were already seated at a table outside, with drinks and a platter of fries in front of them. Max was wearing a blue T-shirt and black shorts, and blue sneakers matching the blue of the shirt. May had opted for a pink sweatshirt and white shorts, and wore a white bandana with a red logo on it. She wore white sneakers with a red pokeball design.

As soon as the two spotted Ash and Pikachu, they grinned immediately and called them over. "Ash! Pikachu!" they chorused.

"Those must be your friends," said Alexa.

"Yeah! HEY GUYS!" Ash grinned and started waving, running up to them. Pikachu could barely believe he was seeing the two of them again, and then broke into a grin itself. "Pika pika! Pikachu!"

Pikachu jumped into May's arms happily. Max, seated next to her, patted it. "Chaaaa~"

"Hi Ash! Hi Pikachu!" greeted Max joyfully.

"It's so good to see you both!" exclaimed May. "I missed you two!"

Alexa panted, finally catching up to her younger companion. "Hah...hah..." She gave the two of them a smile after she caught her breath.

"And you must be Alexa!" said Max. "Ash said you were meeting us here! I'm Max and this is my sister May!"

"Hello! It's nice to meet you!" said Alexa. Helioptile peeked out from behind her. "Helio?" it said shyly.

"I've never seen that pokemon before," said Max.

"I'm not surprised, Ash had the same reaction. This is Helioptile, it's from the Kalos region. It's a little shy," she said with a giggle, as Max reached out to pet it.

"Helio!" Helioptile retreated behind Alexa again.

"Awww..." Max was a little put down by Helioptile's reaction.

Alexa noticed and shook her head. "Hey, don't feel bad. It just takes a while for Helioptile to warm up to someone. I told Ash the same thing, but I'm sure Helioptile will be comfortable with you in no time!"

Pikachu jumped back onto Ash's shoulder, and then Ash and Alexa ordered some soft drinks and a snack. The sun had finished setting and now there was a cool night breeze.

Alexa leaned back in her chair. "Maybe I should do a quick article on this place. Today's the Grand Opening after all."

"Article?" questioned May.

"That's right! I write articles and take pictures for lots of magazines. I'm a pokemon journalist," explained Alexa.

"That is..._so cool!_" exclaimed May, the last part of her sentence in higher pitch. "So you travel around a lot for your job right?"

"Right! I see Pokemon from all over the world. Usually I write articles on wild pokemon, but sometimes I'll write on a restaurant or an attraction here and there," answered Alexa.

"Wow that sounds like so much fun! It's always been my dream to travel all around the world!" squealed May.

"Imagine May going around reviewing restaurants," remarked Max.

"Pikachu..." agreed Pikachu.

"So May. What was that super secret thing you were going on about?" asked Ash.

May giggled. "I thought you'd never ask! Do you remember when I saw you during the Wallace Cup and I told you about the stories I heard about Lake Acuity?"

"I've heard of Lake Acuity. That's where the legendary Pokemon Uxie is said to appear, right?" put in Alexa.

"Yeah! I remember. Is this about Uxie?" asked Ash.

"Not exactly. It turns out that story was only the tip of the iceberg. I heard all sorts of things when I traveled around Sinnoh. Apparently there are a lot of unsolved cases and urban legends. Have you ever heard of the Mint Case?"

Ash and Max looked confused. A flash of recognition went across Alexa's face. "I've heard of that! That was an unsolved case involving a missing child named Mint in the Hoenn region. The parents of that child reported that Mint had some dreams where she claimed she was communicating with a Pokemon before she disappeared."

"That's right," said May seriously. "There's also the Cocoa Case in Sinnoh in which a girl named Cocoa went missing as well. The report says she was a pokemon trainer with a Grovyle. The Grovyle was never found either. And finally, the Toffee case in Unova, where a boy also had dreams of a pokemon speaking to him before he disappeared."

"But what do all of those have in common besides the kids' names being named after food?" asked Max.

"A lot of people think they've been turned into Pokemon," said May.

"What?! Is that even possible?" asked Ash, awestruck.

"There are a lot of rumors and legends that it is. Apparently some pokemon can actually turn humans into pokemon. No one really knows which pokemon can do that, but the only legend I found that's directly about it is from right here in Kanto. It's said that there's a Ninetails that lives here and if someone grabs one of its tails, it'll cast a 1000 year curse on them and bring on many natural disasters."

"And you think that curse is...turning a human into a pokemon?" asked Max.

"It's possible! Anyway, I want to find that Ninetails and ask it," said May.

"But May, if that's true then that's dangerous," said Ash worriedly. "You're not going to grab one of its tails are you?"

"I'm with Ash on this one. It's true that Ninetails has a lot of mystery surrounding it, but it won't do any good to make it angry," said Alexa.

May scratched the back of her head. "I was just going to ask it nicely! Ha ha. What if Ninetails really had the power to do that? It can turn me into a pokemon and back without a curse!"

"Y-you wanna be a pokemon?" asked Max, surprised.

"Why not? It'd be fun seeing what Pikachu has to say," she answered, tickling Pikachu's neck to its enjoyment. "Not to mention Venasaur and Glaceon. The rest of my pokemon were having too much fun at the gym to leave."

"That's true! I'd love to have a better chat with Helioptile myself," agreed Alexa. "Do you know where Ninetails is?"

"Not exactly. I want to ask around and see what the locals know in Kanto. Ash, have you heard anything?" asked May.

"No, all the Ninetails I met had trainers, but it sounds like you're looking for a specific Ninetails right? I haven't heard of a Ninetails like the one you're talking about," he said, thinking.

"Well in the meantime..." May produced a paper out of her messenger bag and handed it to Ash. "Ta-da~"

Ash took it and read it out loud. "Join May on an exciting episode to see the best of the best restaurants in Kanto. This looks like a list..."

"AAHHH!" May screeched, snatching the paper back. "Wrong one! I meant to give you this one!" She dug through her bag and handed Ash another one.

"Heeey I read that before!" exclaimed Max suddenly, in recognition. "It's from May's top attractions series! I follow it pretty religiously. "

"You _do_?" May turned on her brother pinched his cheeks angrily. "But that's my secret diary you squirt!"

Ash ignored them. This time it looked like he was holding a flyer. "Secret Base Tournament held in Kanto?"

Since May and Max had already begun fighting again, Alexa jumped in to explain. "Oh, that's an event held every year in a different region! Word on the street is that it began in Hoenn by a club of secret base aficionados."

"...Are those like connoisseurs?" asked Ash, thinking of Cilan. He could almost hear him jump out from somewhere going, 'I'm a secret base connoisseur!'

"Yeah, sort of!" replied Alexa. "The event lasts three days. I did a special on the Sinnoh one several years ago. It's basically a race to see who can build the best Secret Base. Each team gets to battle for furniture and other things to decorate their base with."

"Battle? That sounds like fun," said Ash instantly.

"They're double battles," said May, who was covered in bruises and scratches. "And open to anyone, even if they aren't a trainer, as long as their partner is one."

"Wait that means...!" exclaimed Max in surprise. Like his sister, he had lots of scratches on his face.

"Yeah," nodded Ash. "You can battle too, Max!"

"So what do you think, guys? Will you come with me to find Ninetails? There's a lot of fun stuff we can do on the way," said May. "You're in, aren't you Max?"

The boy's glasses glinted. "A restaurant tour _and _making a secret base? I'm not gonna say no."

"Well then it's settled. I'm interested too. Mind if I come along with you, May?" asked Alexa. "I'll just let my editor know that I'll be in Kanto longer than I expected."

"Of course, Alexa!" exclaimed May. "The more the merrier!" She looked at Ash, and then hesitated. In a shy voice, she continued, "How about you, Ash? Can you...travel with us too?"

"Turning into a pokemon..." said Ash thoughtfully, crossing his arms across his chest. "What do you think, Pikachu?"

"Pikachu pika!" responded Pikachu enthusiastically.

Ash grinned. "I'm in, sounds like an adventure!"

"Yay, that's great! You don't know how much this means to me, you guys! Traveling with friends is the best!" May grinned. "We're going to have so much fun!"

"But first I gotta go to Pallet Town," Ash reminded her.

Alexa looked at the sky. "Yeah, it's pretty dark out now. We should leave before it gets too late, Ash."

"Do you two want to come to Pallet Town too?" asked Ash.

"What do you think, Max?" asked May.

"Yeah, can we can we? I want to see all of Ash's pokemon!" exclaimed Max, tugging at May's arm. She giggled and nodded at him. "_Alright!_"

"I'm sure they can't wait to see you, Max!" said Ash.

Max energetically pulled May up from the chair. "Come on, let's go! Move it!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming! Hold your horses!"

Ash and Alexa shared a grin. "Those two are a handful, aren't they?" remarked Alexa.

"You really don't know the half of it," said Ash. He had a warm feeling inside. "Pika~" added Pikachu.


	3. A New Color Pallet!

_My Comments_: Ahh so I gotta admit there's a lot of filler ahead before this story gets to the Mystery Dungeon part and I'm thinking it's going to be pretty long. When I get to the other arc, I think it'll be twice as long though depending on how easy or hard it is to write it. I'm also taking a lot of liberty with Alexa's character (also her sister Viola's) because so far in the anime (I'm only keeping up with the dubbed) I don't think there is very much on her, or in the games. I'm trying to keep everyone as in character as I see 'em too, Ash is more like his AG self (so more cocky and sarcastic) but the ages are the same as the actual anime. Please review and tell me what you think! I'm not sure if I'm boring people haha, and my writing obviously hasn't improved since I first started watching pokemon when it came out haha! And if you have any suggestions that'd be great! Oh one more thing, was planning to have Misty, Brock, and Tracy cameo in this too, but if it's too draggy maybe I should skip on that? Please let me know what you think on that. I probably won't write in Gary since I'm not sure how to write him, haven't seen him in the anime in a pretty long time. Well, always, thanks for reading~

_Review Reply- Fan:_ Hey, thanks for reading and reviewing! Actually I kinda remember that happening. Was that in Johto? I watched those so long ago that I can't remember much, but I coulda sworn that happened too as I was writing some of this. Man that must've been a really old episode, if you know the title of it please tell me!

**_Chapter Three: A New Color Pallet!_**

"_Yes! Finally!_" They had just arrived in Pallet Town, and as usual, May was starving. The snack they had back at Wingul Diner was hardly what she'd call dinner. She flung herself at the sign announcing they had entered the town, and hugged it blissfully.

"Uh, May? Earth to May!" Max was so embarrassed he was related to her at the moment. "Give that sign some personal space, will ya?!" He tugged her away from it.

"We were just getting to know each other!" she whined as she was pried away.

"Come on, guys! Professor Oak's lab isn't far away now!" said Ash excitedly. He started to run ahead, when Alexa stopped him in the strictest voice she could muster.

"_Ash._ Shouldn't you go see your mother first?"

"Uhhhhh..." Ash's face said all she needed to know. That was apparently the last thing on his mind.

May and Max exchanged a look. They could sense the you're-in-trouble vibe coming from Alexa.

"I'm sure your mother is very excited to see you! I can understand that you want to see your pokemon first, but I think it'll be smarter for you to see her first," advised Alexa with a wink.

"I guess you're right..." mumbled Ash.

"Good. I'll head to the lab first. I'll meet you there later," said Alexa.

Ash thought quickly. It's not that he didn't want to see his mom, but he also didn't want to be away from his friends. Especially since he wasn't able to see his Pokemon right away... Being at home with just his mom just seemed lonely somehow. He looked at the two siblings. "Why don't both of you come with me?"

"Okay," said May blankly.

"But May, I want to see Ash's Pokemon! I'm going with Alexa!" said Max.

Ash looked annoyed. "_Max_. Just come."

"No way! It'd be way more fun to-"

May covered her brother's mouth as he continued mumbling something about Oak's poetry and seeing Tracy again. "Max would _love_ to come."

Alexa laughed. "Looks like that's settled. I'm sure I can find my way around, so say hi to your mom for me!" She walked off towards Oak's laboratory.

"Will do! Later!" exclaimed Ash. "Come on, guys!" He ran ahead a little bit, before he realized the siblings were lagging behind. When he turned around, he saw Max attempting to drag a collapsed May towards the direction of his house. "Oh good grief."

* * *

Like Alexa said, Delia was very happy when Ash had entered the house again. She hugged him, asked him about his journey, and took his dirty clothes so that she could wash them. It also warmed her heart to see that his friends had come to visit, too.

"You all came just in time for dinner! I made plenty so feel free to eat your heart out!" she said, grinning.

May squealed. "Your mom is _the best_, Ash! Ooooh, I can't wait! I've been waiting to hear those words _all day_!"

"Me too! It's been so long since we had your cooking, Delia!" added Max excitedly. He was also pretty hungry, though not as hungry as his sister.

Ash and May released their pokemon so that they could relax too, and then along with Max, helped Delia set the table. Soon, started eating. Since it was already very late, Delia said they could see the pokemon at the lab first thing tomorrow, much to Ash's and Max's reluctance.

"Fourths!" exclaimed Ash, holding his plate out. His mom piled his plate with more food.

May glared at him competitively from the corner of her eye, and shoveled as much food as fast as possible into her mouth. Finally, she held out her plate too. "FOURTHS!"

"Wow, how can those two keep eating like that?" asked Max, watching. He was full, having stopped at seconds and being the loser of the eating competition. The pokemon were all full as well. Even Pikachu couldn't eat another bite, and was so full it couldn't move.

Delia laughed. "I wonder who will win?"

"Of course it's going to be May," said Max flatly.

"Not a chance. Ash will win, no doubt!" said Delia confidently. She's never known her son to lose in an eating contest.

There was a glint in Ash's eye. He mumbled with his mouth full, "You're going down, May."

"Then I'm bringing you down with me," mumbled May back.

"FIFTHS!" chorused the two of them at the same time.

On their sixth helping, they both noticeably slowed down, until they were on their last bite.

"Can't...anymore..." groaned Ash.

"Not another bite..." mumbled May.

"I don't believe it! It's a tie!" said Delia, amazed.

"Pretty good, Ash...I'll get you next time..." said May tiredly. "Such good food, Deliaaa..."

"Aaaand she's out," said Max finally, as May fell asleep right there.

"She fell asleep..." said Ash. "But if she fell asleep that means I'm the winnerrrr..." He passed out then too.

Delia laughed. "Will you help me clear the table, Max and Mr. Mime? Then we'll help these two get to bed."

"Okay!"

"Mime mime!"

* * *

"RISE AND SHINE!" bellowed Ash, pulling the covers off of May and Max, who were asleep in his livingroom.

Max put his glasses on but instantly awoke. "POKEMON?"

"THAAT'S RIGHT," he yelled out. The two understood each other completely.

"Ugh, what's with all the yelling," mumbled May, face down in her pillow. "Go awaaaayyy."

Max and Ash shared a glance, and laughed to themselves. "Ready, Max?"

"Let's do it."

The both went on either side of May as close to her ears as possible and screamed, "WAAAAAAKE UPPPP."

May shot up. "AAAAAAHHHHH!"

* * *

"What's wrong, May? You didn't have a good night's rest?" asked Delia, as she served the kids breakfast. It took May a while to get her hair into her bandana as it was all sticking up after her rude awakening.

"Oh, I had a great night. It's the _morning_ that wasn't so great," she said in snippy tone.

Ash and Max snickered.

"Oh, but I'm not talking about breakfast. Your breakfast is _delicious_," she corrected herself hastily.

"I know, dear. I think the folks over in Cinnabar Island heard you scream," remarked Delia.

At this, Ash and Max lost it and were laughing pretty hard. May turned completely red. "Ooooh I'm going to get you two back for this!"

"I'm _terrified_," said Ash sarcastically, through his laughter.

"What are you going to do, get your hair to attack us?" added Max, still laughing.

"Aaah! I-it doesn't look bad does it? I need a mirror!" May looked around quickly, not seeing any.

"It looks fine, dear," said Delia, chuckling as well. She retreated into the other room while the kids and their pokemon ate, and found a shopping bag that she had in her closet. They had let her know that they were going on a vacation around Kanto. Well if that was the case, she had just the thing for her son's next trip! She usually sewed him an outfit whenever he stopped by, but she wasn't done with the next outfit and she couldn't resist these clothes for him when she went shopping last time.

The kids energetically cleaned up their plates when they were done. Delia stopped them before they left, holding out the bag.

"Ash, dear! I bought something special for you!" she announced.

"Really? Cool!" Ash looked into the bag. "Awesome, new clothes! I'll be right back!" He ran into his room and changed out of the clothes he wore to Unova. His new clothes consisted of a black T-shirt and blue jeans. He wore a blue sweatshirt that had a black pokeball logo on it, with blue sneakers. There was even a new hat in the shopping bag, which was mostly blue but the front had a black background and an unmistakable green Kanto league logo. No way. He opened his closet and quickly glanced over his hat collection, until he saw the hat he wore on his very first trip as a pokemon trainer. Underneath it was a magazine clip out of an advertisement to win one of two limited edition Kanto league hats. The red one was the one he won himself. Just as he suspected, the blue one was the one his mom got.

He ran back to the livingroom, where May and Max were lounging on the sofa with Delia. Delia stood up when he came in.

"You look so handsome, dear!" she exclaimed.

"Lookin' good, Ash!" said May, winking at him. She seemed to be over the morning events.

"Mom! Thanks for the clothes, you're _awesome!_" he said, with stars in his eyes.

"I know the hat isn't usually your color, but I just couldn't resist," said Delia.

"I love it! But how did you-"

"Even I have some secrets," she interrupted mysteriously. "Now I suppose it's time for you all to get going, am I right?"

Ash turned to May and Max. "We ready to go?" The two nodded and headed out first.

Delia gave Ash one more hug. "Have a good trip, Ash. Love you! Take good care of him, Pikachu!"

"Pika pika!" said Pikachu, giving her its word.

"Love you too, Mom. Bye!" He waved and exited too.

"Last one to the lab is a rotten Exeggcute!" called Ash to the siblings. May and Max immediately started running as fast as they could.

* * *

"There you are," said Alexa, having just finished an interview with Professor Oak. Ash, May, and Max had collapsed in a heap after their race. "Did you run a marathon?"

"Pikachu pikapi, cha," explained Pikachu.

"I-I won guys," panted Max.

"Yeah in your DREAMS," chorused May and Ash, although it was a pretty decisive win by Max.

"Hello there Ash and Pikachu! Long time no see, May and Max," said Professor Oak. "You're all energetic as usual."

"Professor Oak! Hi!" exclaimed Ash, pushing the siblings off of him and standing up.

"Everyone's excited to see you," Professor Oak let him know. Right on cue, all of Ash's Tauros passed by in a stampede.

Max and May grinned to each other. "Think we can race on those, May?"

"You're on!" May answered.

"Wait, I'm not sure that's a good...idea..." muttered Ash, but they had already run off.

"You've got quite a collection here, Ash! I can't believe all of these pokemon are yours!" said Alexa.

"Yup! These are all good friends of mine," said Ash. He ran off to greet them all, and released the pokemon he caught in Unova from their pokeballs.

They had a fairly long visit catching up with all the pokemon, and in which there was one moment where Ash dived to catch May from flying off one of his Tauros (apparently the pair lost a race to Max and another Tauros, so it wasn't happy). Max was disappointed because Tracy wasn't there, since he was off visiting Misty at the Cerulean City Gym, but quickly got over it with all the pokemon to play with.

Alexa had written an article and sent it off to her editor, and even walked over to Delia's and had a short tea break. When she arrived back at the lab, she called up her little sister, Viola, who was a gym leader in Kalos.

Viola picked up the phone immediately. "Hey there sis! How was the cruise? I'm still jealous I couldn't come with, but the gym's been pretty hectic lately. When are you coming back anyway?"

"Morning Viola! The cruise was great. Actually, I met a young trainer during my trip named Ash. He's aiming to be a Pokemon Master," Alexa informed her.

Before Alexa could continue, her sister interrupted. "A _young_ trainer? Is he cute? Don't tell me-a romance on a cruise- no way, whatever happened to that other guy?! I'm-so-jealous!"

Her sister was already going on a tangent. Alexa choked slightly in surprise. "Viola-VIOLA-listen to me! He's only ten!"

"Wha-ew, _gross_," exclaimed Viola.

"Are you going to listen to me now?!" asked Alexa, somewhat impatiently.

Viola sighed. "_Fine_."

"I traveled a little with Ash to follow some leads on the Decalor Islands, but nothing I could really write about. When we arrived in Vermillion, he introduced me to some of his other friends. They're good kids, May and Max. His friend May had something really interesting to say, it's actually worth checking out...Do you think people can turn into Pokemon?"

This just caused Viola to groan. "Don't tell me, the _Mint case again_. I thought you were over that by now!"

"Once a reporter, always a reporter-"

"No one says that!" huffed Viola.

"May's angle on it is something I haven't thought of. Try to find a pokemon who has the ability to turn a human into a pokemon. I'm going to travel a little longer with these kids before I come back to Kalos. I was wondering if you can take care of Noivern and GoGoat for me while I'm here..."

"Well, sure, that's fine I guess. But you always keep them on hand when you're reporting..." Viola found this request strange.

"I don't need any heavy equipment so I thought I'd give them a break. I decided to do some freelance. I already e-mailed my editor at Lumiose City. There are some events in Kanto taking place so we're checking those out while we hunt for leads on Ninetails. I'm transferring them over now." Alexa put the pokeballs in the transporter machine, and watched a white light as they disappeared. "Sent."

Viola nodded, waiting by her end of the transporter. "Okay, they're here. Wait, events? Like what?"

"Well there's the Secret Base Tournament for one..."

"Whaaa you get to do all the fun stuff while I'm stuck at the gym! Remember our Sinnoh Secret Base? I wonder how that place is holding up..."

"Hey, as I recall you _love_ gym battling," pointed out Alexa.

"Speaking of gym battling, I've got a challenger soon so I have to run. If you turn into a pokemon you better turn back into a human and come visit sis! See ya!"

"Haha of course. Bye!" The video screen switched off, and Alexa put the phone back into its receiver.

It was almost time to go. May asked if she could leave Venusaur with Professor Oak, since it didn't seem to want to leave Ash's Bulbasaur at all, and he said that was perfectly fine with him.

Since the rest of Ash's pokemon were having so much fun with each other, Ash decided to just go on the trip with only Pikachu. They all said their farewells to Professor Oak, and set off on their new journey.


	4. Jumping around Viridian City!

_My comments: _Warning- LONG. I re-wrote this chapter and it ended up being a mash-up of the first draft and the second one, and now I'm reasonably confident I can write pages and pages of nothing hahahaha Sorry lots of filler still ahead. I will probably not do cameos because I want to hurry it up though. I'll try to make my next chapters shorter haha

_Jojo298: _Thanks bro :D

_**Chapter Four: Jump around Viridian City!**_

Ash grinned enthusiastically at his best pal, Pikachu. There it was! Viridian City in all of its glory! He couldn't wait to actually explore it again. He's always simply passed through it on his way home.

"Pi..ka…" responded Pikachu, flattening its body on Ash's hat. Its ears drooped and it looked tired, as if it had walked the way from Pallet Town on its own.

"Oh come on, buddy," said Ash, poking Pikachu's cheek. "Perk up a little." He directed his attention to Max. "Say Max. How about you and me have a little rematch? Race ya to the city!"

"Pikaaaaaaa," groaned Pikachu, but it had anticipated that its best friend would do something like this.

"Okay. But there's no way you're going to beat me," said Max competitively.

"Someone call it," said Ash, getting ready to roll.

"Alright. Three…two…one…GO!" said Alexa. The two boys ran ahead towards the city gate. Alexa and May took their sweet time, but May had noticeably drooped just like Pikachu.

When Max had put enough distance from May and Alexa, he pretended he sprained his ankle. "Ow, owwwww!" He whined, buckling over in pain.

Ash, who was several yards ahead and right in front of the city gate, stopped in his tracks. "Max? Oh no, are you okay?" He ran towards the younger boy in worry and bent over him. "What happened? Let me see."

Max's glasses glinted. "_Heheh_." He immediately got up and ran ahead.

"HEY!" Ash just realized what had happened in shock. "THAT'S CHEATING!" he bellowed. But Max had already ran through the city's gates, finishing the race.

"I won, I won! You saw that right, Pikachu? Yaaaaay!" cheered Max.

"Pika," agreed Pikachu.

"Grrrr…To think I was worried about you," he muttered under his breath. "And I would've won too. I'm totally faster."

"Just face it, Ash. I'm the racing champion. You're leagues behind _me_," bragged Max.

Ash playfully flicked Max on the head. "_Whatever_, racing champion Max."

"Owwww," whined Max. "You're just a sore loser!"

May and Alexa walked in a little while later, to see Ash and Max playfully wrestling.

"Lemme guess. Max won again," said May flatly. Her arms were behind her head now, and she looked at her brother and her friend with no interest.

"Yup! You should've seen me, May, I was so fast! Ash was in the dust!" exclaimed Max, getting up.

"He's lying! Your brother is a little cheater!" exclaimed Ash.

"Don't caaaaaare," said May.

"We're a little early for the Secret Base tournament," remarked Alexa. "Why don't we head over to a hotel and get a couple of rooms?"

"Hotel? Not the pokemon center?" said Ash inquisitively.

"Yup!" Alexa nodded. "I think it'll be more relaxing if we stayed at a hotel, and also none of us are doing any intensive training. Just follow me, I happen to know a very good one in the area. We should really book our rooms first before we have fun in the city."

The other three looked at each other and shrugged. They were used to staying at pokemon centers, but Alexa was right. It's not like they were here for a lot of battling, so it didn't make too much sense to stay at the pokemon center.

They followed Alexa to a moderately sized building which had a big sign proudly stating, "Mantine Hotel Viridian City." It was a chain hotel and the group had seen some of these hotels in other cities on their travels, but had never stayed in any before. Alexa talked to the woman at the front desk while the other three hung back in the lobby. The lobby had a huge television screen and sofas facing it. There was also a table with some snacks for the patrons of the hotel.

Max and Ash were about to make a beeline for the snacks, when they heard a loud squeal. May flew across the lobby and to the hallway. The two boys shared a look, and then went to see what was up with her.

May had her face pressed against a glass wall, through which they could see an indoor pool. Max immediately got excited as well.

"YAY! There's a pool!" exclaimed May, practically drooling.

"I can't wait to swim in there!" remarked Max.

"I'm so happy! I bought a new swimsuit just in case!" said May.

"Aww…" Max suddenly remembered something. "I forgot my swimsuit at home..."

May turned and winked at him. "Don't you worry, little brother! I brought one of yours too!"

"Yay! You're the best, May!" exclaimed Max.

"Wow you guys…You're going crazy over a pool," commented Ash, not really getting into the spirit. Pikachu, however, had finally perked up. "Pikachu pika! Pika pi!"

"Pikachu gets it!" said Max happily, patting Pikachu.

"Okay, guys. I've got our rooms!" said Alexa, walking up to them and fanning out card keys with her right hand.

"Rooms?" repeated Max.

"That's right," nodded Alexa. "I stay up late doing research and writing stories and don't want to disturb you guys, so I thought it'd be best if I stayed in another room."

"Aww, you wouldn't disturb us. Right guys?" said Ash. May and Max both agreed with him.

"Haha, thanks, but trust me. I'm talking into my mic for a lot of these stories. Our rooms are right next to each other though, and you can always come in if you need anything. Here." She handed card keys to Max, May, and Ash. "Those are the keys to room 221. And here's an extra key for room 222, which I'm staying in. You can hold onto it, May."

"Sure," said May, taking the extra key.

"Alright, now why don't we go check out the rooms and leave anything in there we don't need?" suggested Alexa. "I've also asked the front desk to bring up extra towels and blankets just in case for you guys."

"Wow, you thought of everything," said Ash, impressed.

Alexa laughed. "I'm always traveling, I've picked up a few things."

They headed upstairs to the rooms, and decided to relax for a little while before they headed out again. While Alexa checked out her room, the three walked into room 221.

"Wow, lookin' good!" exclaimed May happily. She's stayed in some hotels on the few trips that her family went on, and loved how rooms looked before her family got to them. Right now it was nice and clean. There was a TV and two double beds, and a desk.

"Yeaaahh!" Ash launched himself on the bed closest to the door immediately. Pikachu was ecstatic to be on the soft bed, and sighed happily.

"Okay, guess Ash called that one," noted Max.

"Hey, what's this thing?" May asked, walking over to something that was folded up. It looked metal, with blankets on the inside. She pulled it apart and it pried open instantly, startling her. "Oh, nice! It's a cot!"

"That's great!" said Ash from the bed. "It's bite-sized like Max!"

"Hey, what is that supposed to mean?" said Max, annoyed. He sat on the cot though. "But it's actually pretty comfy! I like it!"

"You wanna stay on the cot then, Max?" asked May, somewhat surprised. "I wouldn't mind if you wanted the bed…"

"No way! I like it!" decided Max.

"Okaay. If you feel like switching just say so," offered May. She put down her messenger bag, picked up the TV remote, and jumped on the bed Ash was sitting on, startling him a little. "Let's watch something!" She pressed the power button on the remote.

Ash sat up. "Any movies on?"

"Hmm..." May pressed the guide button and scrolled down.

"Extreme Trubbish sounds interesting," said Max from the cot.

Just then, Alexa opened the door carrying some extra towels, blankets, and soap. "Hey guys! How's the room?"

"Great!" answered Ash. "When do you want to head out?"

Alexa put everything she was carrying down on top of the set of drawers near the TV. "Well we just had quite a walk. Maybe we should just relax and see what our next move is? Registration isn't until tomorrow morning anyway, so we have all of today to check out the city." She sat down on the other bed. "Looks like you all decided on watching TV already though!"

"Yeah, we're thinking of watching a movie," explained Max.

"I'm not really in the mood to watch Extreme Trubbish," said May, answering Max's question from before. "I heard it got bad reviews. People said it was trashy."

"Hey they're showing last year's Johto League tournament! Let's watch that!" exclaimed Ash.

May gave him a disgusted look. "We're on vacation, can't you not think of training and leagues for like a second?" Ash responded by sticking his tongue out at her.

"No way! The Light of Cyndaquil is on! We have to watch that one! That's one of my favorite movies!" said Alexa.

"I haven't heard of that one," admitted Max.

"It's so good," gushed Alexa. "You'll love it, I promise."

"Okay, I guess. Turn to that one, May," said Ash.

May scrolled down the guide until she got to the right channel and selected it. They had started it just in time, as the opening credits were playing.

* * *

The group was bawling as the ending credits rolled on the screen. Even Pikachu and Helioptile couldn't stop their tears.

"That was so sad!" said Max, taking off his glasses to wipe his tears away.

"I know!" sobbed Ash. "I can't believe Cyndaquil's father had to die for him!"

"I still can't get over that part!" agreed May through her tears.

"Gets me every time." Alexa sniffed. Then she got up and her demeanor completely changed to cheerful. "So guys, that's enough of a break! Let's go out and have some fun!" She pumped her fist in the air.

"Whoa," remarked Ash. "How can you think of having fun when Cyndaquil's life was so sad!"

"I watched the movie four times," pointed out Alexa. "I'm used to it by now.'

May sniffed and without getting up, leaned over the foot of the bed and desperately tried to get her messenger bag. Max was slightly disappointed that he was so far away at the moment, because it was the perfect time to push her off the bed.

Ash noticed her struggling. "Uhhh...need help, May?"

"No, I got it," she said weakly, as she managed to grab hold of the bag's strap. She almost fell off though (even without Max's input) but Ash grabbed her legs just in time and reeled her back onto the bed. "Thanks heheh."

"You really oughta be more careful..." murmured Ash, knowing that his companion was prone to clumsiness.

May dug in her bag, producing her list of things she wanted to see and do. She immediately brightened. "Wow, there are a lot of shops and cafes to check out!"

"Oh yeah?" Ash stuck his head in front of the list, trying to get a good look. "Hey! Wow, didn't know there were so many restaurants in Viridian...Cool, there's even a magic show!"

"A magic show? I wanna go, I wanna go!" exclaimed Max.

"And we need time to swim at the pool!" drooled May.

"Don't forget, we should probably ask around and see if we can come up with any clues for Ninetails," Alexa reminded them. She wondered if she should hit up some bars. She always found a lot of information in those types of places.

"Magic shooooowwwww," whined Max.

"I think Max wants to go to the magic show," said Ash. "Just...call it a hunch."

"Okay, so we'll do that, first," said Alexa agreeably. Max cheered.

"We have to go to this place for noodles, this place for burgers, this place for eclairs, OH definitely this one, they have the _best _pies, and-" May circled stuff on her list as she went on, drooling even more.

Ash sighed. "We can't do all of those, you need to pick."

"There's a restaurant I want to take you to for dinner, so let's not get too stuffed before then," said Alexa.

"Okay, but that still leaves us with Lunch, Lunch number two, and mid-afternoon meal, and pre-dinner," said May, counting on her fingers.

Max rolled his eyes. "You just made up half of those just now!"

"Did not, Max! They really exist!" said May instantly.

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"SHUUUUT UPPPP!" screamed Ash, unable to take it anymore. "We are eating at ONE restaurant for lunch, ONE cafe for dessert, and we're only going to ONE of these places for ice-cream."

"Awww," sulked May.

"Fine, that's fair," said Max, quieting down.

Alexa laughed. "Wow, Ash, didn't know you had it in you."

May tugged on Ash's sleeve timidly. "Ash? One frozen yogurt place too? Pretty please?"

Ash hissed at her and she shrank back. He knew that if he gave in with her, Max would probably complain about something and the two would start again.

* * *

"Wow, that magic show was so good!" exclaimed Max. Ash walked ahead of him, baffled and half wondering if pidgeys would appear from nowhere like in the show. The two of them had exited first, as May and Alexa decided to check out a booth selling souvenirs inside and had promised to meet up with them soon.

"I wonder how that magician did all that stuff," said Ash, still in awe.

"Yeah! Like how those handkerchiefs turned into bunearys! And when that scyther slashed at his assistant in the box, I thought she was a _goner_!" exclaimed his younger companion.

"Uh huh! But the best part was when he called you on stage! When Drowzee hypnotized you, you made all these funny pokemon noises," exclaimed Ash.

"Yeah, I don't remember that part too well," admitted Max.

"Torchic, tor! Torchic tor~" mocked Ash.

Max reddened. "I _said that_? That's so embarrassing!"

"Ha haa~ Torchic torchic!" continued Ash.

Just then, the two noticed a Charmander running into a nearby alleyway. They immediately stopped goofing off, and walked closer to see what was going on.

There was a Rattata that was heavily bruised and looked malnourished on the floor of the alleyway. The Charmander ran up to it. Ash and Max were still a little further away and before they could do anything, the Charmander held something small up. They couldn't tell what it was, maybe some kind of medal or badge? There was a white flash, and then the rattata wasn't there anymore. The Charmander held the item up again, and there was another white flash. The Charmander was gone.

Ash and Max looked at each other, and at the same time went, "_Did you see that?_"

They talked over each other for about a minute, before Ash decided to let Max go first.

"That Charmander just disappeared!" exclaimed Max.

"I know! I saw it with my own eyes!" said Ash, just as surprised. "How do you suppose that happened?"

"I don't know, I just saw a white light!"

"It was holding up something, I think it was a badge," noted Ash.

"Really? I couldn't see anything at all," said Max. Even though he wore glasses, he tended to miss things sometimes. "It didn't look like a teleport attack, and besides, Charmanders don't learn Teleport."

"That's true. I think it has something to do with the badge the Charmander was holding. I hope they'll be okay. That Rattata looked like it seriously needed help."

"But didn't the Charmander look like it knew exactly where Rattata was?" asked Max, replaying the scene in his head.

"Yeah, now that you mention it. That's so weird. I guess it was coming to help the Rattata..."

"Yeah..."

The two looked more closely at the alleyway just in case, but there were no remains of the Rattata or the Charmander.

Alexa and May spotted them soon after. Max recounted what happened, but May thought he was making things up. But it was too weird that Ash claimed he saw the same thing, so maybe they were telling the truth after all? She hoped they weren't just pulling her leg though. Alexa also thought the story was strange.

They spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around the city. Ash also made sure to limit the amount of shops they frequented so that May wouldn't get carried away. They asked around to see if anyone knew anything about Ninetails, but only found some stories of trainers with them. After hitting all the major places on May's list, the group went back to the hotel for a swim before they left for the restaurant.

* * *

The restaurant that Alexa took them to was different from the one May took Dawn, Brock, and Ash to when she visited to compete in the Wallace Cup. Alexa said there weren't many restaurants like it in Kalos, and that's why it was one of her favorite places to eat when she stopped by in Kanto. The staff provided an appetizer- soup made from the freshest berries grown in farms near Viridian City- and the main course. But between waiting for the appetizer and the main course, customers got to use small kitchenettes set up to make dessert with ingredients and recipes provided by the restaurant. At the end of the meal, every team's dessert was tasted by a panel of judges. Everyone who competed in the food contest got a voucher for seconds and a free meal, but the team that won got unlimited food for the day. Each kitchenette was for one to two people, so the group would have to split.

"Wow this is so exciting!" exclaimed May, between mouthfuls of soup. "I can't wait to compete!"

"But you can't cook," said Max. "The chances of you actually winning are pretty low."

"Shut up." May didn't look amused at her brother's remark.

Alexa laughed. "Hey, you never know! Anyone can win this contest! I heard from a semi-reliable source that if someone's _actually_ a top chef, they don't allow them to compete, so we're competing against people of the same skill level."

"But how do they know?" asked Ash.

Alexa shrugged. "Maybe...chefs have the power to sense other chefs?"

"Whoa." The thought of chefs being able to do that impressed Max. Ash didn't look all that convinced though.

"How are we going to split up?" asked Ash. "The rules are that only one or two people can be on a team."

"Well, I'm with Alexa. If I want to win, I'm not cooking with either of you two," put in Max.

"Sounds good to me! Helioptile's secretly a whiz at the kitchen!" Alexa patted Helioptile, who was busy eating some soup left for it on the table. "Now aren't you, Helioptile?"

"H-helio..." Helioptile looked flustered. Glaceon, who was eating next to it added, "Gla, gla!" to cheer it on.

"Well that leaves me and May," said Ash. He looked at her, fired up. "We'll crush 'em!"

May was equally pumped. "Yeah! I'm not letting anyone else win those unlimited meals! We've got an eating contest rematch to hold!"

"Here we go again..." muttered her younger brother.

* * *

"Ash..nooo.. You gotta stir it or it'll burn! It says so right here in this book!" May pointed to a random line in the recipe book.

Ash squinted at it. "That's not the recipe we decided on. We decided on the Pecha Truffle, not the Leppa Souffle. Remember? Because we'd need like a billion of those Leppa berries since they're so small."

"Whaaat? But I started preparing the other one!" Ash glanced behind the girl worriedly, and saw a sad pile of slop on the counter.

"Uhhmm.. Pretty sure it's not supposed to look like that anyway..." he pointed out as kindly as he could. Before she started freaking out though, he added, "But the mix I started is coming out great! Here, have a taste~" He put a spoon into the pot and before May even responded, stuck it into her mouth. "Whaddaya think?"

"Mppff-mfffphhh" May flailed her arms in horror. Ash withdrew the spoon in dismay.

"Come on, you're overreacting. There's no way it could be that bad." He stuck the spoon into his mouth and then gagged. "H-how could it taste like that when all that's in here is berries?!"

May found another spoon and took a bit of the slop that she made, and stuck it into Ash's mouth for good measure. "Here, it'll wash out the taste of whatever that stuff is."

"Unghhhh" Ash almost felt like passing out. He wasn't going to say it out loud, but he definitely thought it was worse than his.

"For real?" May tried her own creation, and had to agree it wasn't any good. "Oh no...they're both failures. I don't get it, we followed the recipe..." The two of them downed some water to get the awful tastes out.

"I know! Let's mix 'em together!" exclaimed Ash. "Don't they always say two negatives make a positive?"

"Heeeeey, not a bad idea," agreed May.

"Yup, that's because I came up with it," he replied cockily. "Just dump the stuff you made into this pot and then we'll stick it into the oven or something."

"That's geniuussss!" sang May. "First place, here we come~"

* * *

"Can you help me mix the batter, Max?" asked Alexa.

"Okay!" Max was excited. He loved mixing the batter. He usually helped his mom do that part. Cooking with Alexa was fun; while they waited for certain parts of the recipe to heat up and while they prepped, she told him all sorts of stories of her travels. He was also able to help a lot too from the tips he picked up when Brock was around. Sometimes Alexa would get too involved in a story and something would almost burn, or she almost dropped things, so Max's help (and Helioptile's) was very appreciated on her side.

"Wow, you did a really good job mixing! There aren't any lumps or anything," said Alexa encouragingly. Max was proud of himself.

"So your sister, is she a reporter too?" he asked.

"Hmm? No, she's a gym leader," responded Alexa. She held the cake pan steady as Max poured the batter into it.

"Wow, that's so cool! My dad's a gym leader too!" exclaimed Max.

"Oh really?" She scooped as much of the batter off of the bowl as she could, and then did a double take. "So _that's_ why you two look so familiar! You're Norman's kids!"

"You heard of my dad? Wow! A world-class reporter knows about my dad!"

Alexa laughed, embarrassed. "I wouldn't say world-class. But of course! Who doesn't know about Norman and Caroline? They used to be on the front page of every magazine! I'm surprised that they've been out of the limelight actually, they must be very good at dodging paparazzi."

"Did you write articles on them or something?" asked Max curiously.

"What, me? No, I focus on pokemon. My sister on the other hand, used to be pretty big on scandals-not that your parents had any of course! I mean there were some close calls, but turns out Norman can actually just be pretty clueless about that sort of thing."

"_Hey! _My dad's _not_ clueless!" said Max immediately. He admired his father and wouldn't hear of it if anyone said anything bad about him.

"That's not what the tabloids say. Then again, you can do a _lot _with a good picture. Viola's taught me that. She was always quite an expert when it came to cameras..."

"Wait, what is that supposed to mean..." Max was confused. What did she mean, do a lot with a picture?

"Norman and Caroline, that really takes me back! They were the _it_ couple back in the day. Come to think of it, it was because of them that secret bases became so popular," said Alexa nostalgically.

"They even had a secret base? How come they never told me about it?" wondered Max.

"Well it wasn't really a secret after a while, it became the hit couple's sp-" Alexa suddenly seemed to realize that maybe this topic wasn't the best. "Uh, nevermind. Let's put this pan in the oven, shall we?"

"Huh? Okay..." Max thought it was a little weird that Alexa stopped mid-sentence, but didn't think too much about it.

"Viola will be pretty jealous when she finds out I've been traveling with Norman's kids! Do you two even realize how famous you all are? You're _the_ celebrity family!" Alexa pressed some buttons to set the oven's timer.

"Well, we have an idea..." mumbled Max

* * *

"It's readdyyyy~!" called out Ash. He put on the coolest oven mitts he could find, which were blue and each had a picture of a boat on it.

"Takeitouttakeitouttakeitout!" chanted May, jumping in place.

Ash pulled out the baking pan and before he set it on the counter, struck a pose with it. "We made...a Pecha Leppa Surprise!" Pikachu, who was watching the whole event but didn't lift a finger to participate, added, "Pi pikachu!"

"I can't believe you did the pose without me," whined May.

"Sorry May, I didn't think you wanted to. I mean now that I think about it, this cake doesn't...look that good. Bummer..." Ash was clearly disappointed.

"Leave that part to me!" May pulled out some decorating icing tubes. "Look what I found by the ingredients!"

"Wow, smart idea, May!" exclaimed Ash.

"_You're_ not the only one who's smart!" said May, smiling and sticking her tongue out. "So now let's make this cake awesome!" She handed a tube to Ash.

"I'm going to draw a Pikachu!" said Ash excitedly.

"And I'm going to draw a cute wurmple!" squealed May.

"Pikachu." Pikachu inched over to a spare icing tube that May left on the counter and started playing with it. "Pikaaa." It squirted some icing into its mouth and decided it loved the taste. Glaceon looked at it curiously but just opted to lounge around, waiting for the food to be done.

* * *

Alexa put on some oven mitts. "Can you open the oven door for me, Max?"

"Sure!" Max pulled down the oven door, and a pleasant smell wafted from it. "Wow, it's looking good!"

"Yup! We might've snagged ourselves a winner here!" said Alexa, taking in the smell. She slipped the cake out and put it on the counter. "It looks pretty good too. How's the frosting coming along?"

"It's done!" announced Max. He took a butter knife to get ready to spread it over their cake.

"Perfect! I think it's crunch time so we should hurry. They're going to take some of the cake to judge it." Alexa let Max handle the frosting.

"I think that's good. Should I put in anymore?" asked Max.

"Well another layer would certainly not hurt, I love frosting," confessed Alexa.

"Okay, another layer comin' right up!" Max said, determined to make the frosting look as even and nice as possible.

"Nice job, Max! Okay, let's head back to our table, looks like they brought our dinners."

Ash and May were already at the table. They were gushing at how beautiful their artwork was as they stuffed their faces.

"Way to wait for us," remarked Max.

"You looked married to your cake so we didn't want to interrupt," said May flatly.

"I was just tryin' to do a good job on it! It's probably way better than_ your_ cake," argued Max.

"Fat chance. Does _your_ cake have a Pikachu on it?" jumped in Ash.

"Pika pi," agreed Pikachu.

"No, but it has chocolate frosting..." said Max uncertainly. He half wondered if they could go back and draw something cool on their cake.

"Why don't we let the judges decide how our cakes went and enjoy our dinners?" said Alexa.

The other three glared daggers at each other, while she just smiled obliviously.

"So when do they put up the results?" asked May while chewing. Max immediately made a comment telling her to close it, which she ignored.

"Pretty soon, they just have to taste everything first," explained Alexa. "This way the team who wins knows they get unlimited plates."

"Cool! Are those the judges?" asked Ash, pointing at a table where two people were sitting and eating different sweets.

"Hey, isn't that...Nurse Joy?" said Max, recognizing her at once.

"Yeah, and isn't that...Mr. Sukizo? He's usually judgin' contests," observed May.

"Maybe he took this as another job? Contest season is over after all," remarked Alexa.

"I guess..." May stared at Mr. Sukizo. She couldn't hear what he said, but she thought for sure that he was mouthing "Remarkable" or "Not remarkable" every time.

Soon enough, Nurse Joy and Mr. Sukizo finished trying all the dishes. They told a waiter something, and then the waiter made an announcement.

"The results are here! The winner of today's Cooking Competition iiiiissss..." He paused for dramatic effect. "The team of Lucy and Scott!"

"Awwww..." whined Ash.

"Hah! You two didn't win!" said Max, satisfied.

"Yeah but you didn't either," pointed out May.

"We did our best, Max, that's what counts right?" asked Alexa.

An older man came out from the back kitchen and said something to the waiter that made the announcement. The waiter looked surprised for a second, but then said, "But that's not all folks! Tonight's actually our third anniversary! To celebrate, everyone's a grand prize winner!"

The group looked at each other amazed, and then Ash and May pumped their fists in the air. "YEAH!" they chorused.

"Eating contest rematch?" asked Ash, determined to win this time.

"You know it!" said May happily.

Later, a waiter brought their desserts to the table. It was unanimously decided the Wurmple and Pikachu cake looked better than it tasted, but Alexa's and Max's was pretty tasty. It didn't matter though, because Ash and May didn't leave even a crumb.

* * *

"Man, I'm stuffed! That place has _great _food," said May, stretching her arms. They had just left the restaurant and started to head back to the hotel.

"Well that's a first. May being stuffed," said Max.

"Man...I just can't win an eating contest against May. It's just one tie after another," said Ash with a sigh. He made a determined fist. "I'll get you next time, just wait!"

"In your dreams, Ash Ketchum!" May made a similar fist. The two almost looked like they had flames behind them.

Alexa shrugged. "You two are really fired up about the strangest things"

They were mostly quiet on their walk. Max yawned. He was already very sleepy. He snuggled Pikachu in his arms, who had opted to stay with him for the moment.

"Ash?" chirped up May.

"Yeaaah?" answered Ash. Her suddenly calling his name broke him away from his thoughts.

"How do you suppose the pokemon center got here?" May had been thinking about that the whole time she was quiet.

Normally Ash would ignore this kind of question. He remembered when he traveled with her, Max, and Brock. Once in a while, she'd say something like that, and either Max or Brock would answer her. But now, Max was way too tired, and Alexa was busy checking something on her phone.

"I guess...it was built...one day..." answered Ash, not really putting any thought or effort into the answer. A thought flashed into his mind again about how in the world she managed to get through Johto without any travel companions.

"Wow, how mysterious. D'you think a pokemon built it?" she asked.

"I guess," he said, uninterested.

"_Wow_. I bet if I was a pokemon, I'd be a super strong Machamp." They walked into the hotel and found their room. Alexa wished them a good night and walked into room 222. Max headed straight for the bathroom to brush his teeth before bed.

Ash tried to imagine a Machamp with May's bandana on it. Nope. That wasn't gonna work.


	5. Secret Base Tournament: Day 1!

_jojo298- _Thanks so much for always reviewing! You're the best, homes!

Big thank you to everyone who read, followed, and/or favorited! The next chapter they'll finally be turned into Pokemon (I rushed things but I did really want to get into the meat of the story)! I'm going on vacation for the next couple of weeks but I should still be updating weekly ^^

**_Chapter Five: Secret Base Tournament_**_-__ Day 1!_

Ash awoke, well rested. It took him a while to fall asleep the night before, probably because of the soda drinking contest that May suggested (even Alexa and Max joined in on that one), which in hindsight was probably a bad idea. He had ended up eating some snacks in the lobby and dipping into the hot tub with May after the others had fallen asleep before the two of them finally got tired. They even checked out the small arcade in the hotel and played some fighting games (May won some of those through sheer luck, but Ash had her destroyed majority of the time).

Max came out of the bathroom, having just finished brushing his teeth and helping Pikachu wash up. "Morning Ash. Alexa said we should hurry and get ready or we'll miss the hotel's breakfast."

"Whaat? Why didn't you wake me up before?!" complained Ash, jumping out of bed instantly and rushing off towards the bathroom, narrowly avoiding Glaceon who was busy grooming itself. Pikachu just let out a sigh.

"Can I go down without you?" asked Max, who was pretty hungry.

"Wait for me, I'll only take a few minutes!" responded Ash quickly.

When Ash was ready, he walked out of the hotel room with Glaceon and Max in tow. Pikachu paused in front of the door, saying, "Pika, pika, pikachu?!" but Ash promptly scooped it up and made his way downstairs. They met up with Alexa, who was already eating a plate of eggs and had some coffee in front of her. Helioptile was eating some of the pokemon food the hotel provided as well.

"Morning guys!" said Alexa brightly. Then she noticed someone was missing. "Wait, where's May?"

Ash, Max, and Glaceon all glanced at each other. "Oh no we forgot May!" chorused Max and Ash together. Pikachu sighed, exasperated.

"Well I'm starving. If she misses breakfast, it's _her _problem," said Max, heading to get food. Alexa and Ash sweatdropped as he went.

"I have a feeling May wouldn't take too kindly to missing breakfast," pointed out Alexa. "Ash, would you mind bringing her down? I'll keep an eye on Max and the pokemon."

"Yeah...fine..." grumbled Ash.

He found May drooling over her pillow in the room, still fast asleep. He shook her awake. "May? May wake _up_."

"Don't run away my little creampuff..." May mumbled in her sleep. "I'm gonna eat youuu.."

"MAY GET UP!" screamed Ash, losing patience.

May sat up straight away, "Wh-where am I? Where's the dessert buffet?"

"We're at the hotel," said Ash, in an irritated tone. "Alexa and Max are already downstairs eating breakfast and we have to hurry before it closes."

"Breaaaakfast? Cloooosing?" repeated May in horror. She got up hurriedly.

"I'll wait for you downstairs," said Ash.

"No wait for me!" exclaimed May.

~Some time later~

Ash crossed his arms across his chest and angrily stomped down the stairs. "I can't _believe_ you took so long and made me wait for you." He thought he should've made Max bring her down instead.

"I had to make sure I looked presentable," said May, happily stroking her hair.

"Yeah, _I know_. You spent an hour brushing that _presentable_ hair of yours," he said grouchily.

"For your information, I haven't been up for an hour," pointed out May cheerfully. This only served to make Ash even more steamed, and he lost his patience and screamed at her sometime before they reached the breakfast area. His anger was pretty much lost on May though, since she rushed off to get food as soon as they got there. Max noticed Ash's annoyance and found it hilarious.

"See, this is why I didn't wake her up," he gloated, shoveling food into his mouth.

"Yeah, _whatever_," groaned Ash in response.

"Cheer up, Ash," said Alexa. "We've got a really fun day ahead of us and you two still made it in time for the breakfast. You should try the potatoes, they're really good!"

Ash ended up agreeing with her, those potatoes _were_ pretty good, and forgot about being irritated as the group enjoyed breakfast together.

* * *

Alexa signed some papers after checking over the car with the rental car associate. Everything was looking good and they were all set. She had called the night before for the car rental to make things easier for the trip.

Alexa put on sunglasses, covering her dark green eyes. She looked over at the kids. "You all ready to roll?" She opened the doors to the sleek red car she rented. Though she enjoyed a good walk, she couldn't wait to drive after that long cruise trip.

"I call front seat!" exclaimed Ash, getting into the passenger seat before the other two could say anything.

Max and May shared a mischievous grin- they didn't need Ash in the back to bother him.

"We'll get to the registration area in no time," said Alexa, turning the key to start the car.

"AAAAHH!" The group screamed as Alexa floored it.

"You drive just like Professor Birch!" exclaimed Max, holding on to May for dear life. The two forgot all about messing with Ash.

"Professor Birch?" repeated Alexa, with a grin. As far as the driving went, she considered that a compliment. "He's a cutie~"

"You met him?" asked Ash.

"_Cutie_? Isn't he a whole lot older than you?" asked Max, surprised.

"Oh _shut up_, Max," said May, already with hearts in her eyes. "Obviously in true love age doesn't matter!"

Max and Ash groaned at that.

"Professor Birch is a blast to work with," explained Alexa. "Can't say any of my other assignments were half as much fun."

"What was the assignment on?" asked Ash curiously.

"Well, it was supposed to be a serious documentary on Poochyena grooming," recounted Alexa.

"Serious and Professor Birch? Yeah those two don't really go together," remarked Max.

"The DVD sales did really well! Reviews got an A+ when it came to comedy," said Alexa happily. She signaled for a turn. "I had to edit out half of the professor's screams though, it was taking away from the Poochyena's role."

"Figures," said Max. He decided to check out the DVD later though, he could always use a good laugh.

Alexa parked the car in front of a building. "Okay, we're here!"

"...Viridian Public Library?" said Ash, staring at the building. He hadn't been in the building since his mom took him and Gary to borrow books when they were younger.

"Yay a library!" said Max excitedly.

"I thought we could do some research," said Alexa. "The library's a good place to start, so let's all look for anything to do with ninetales, shall we?"

When they walked in, Max immediately ran off to look through the shelves. May stared glumly at all of the books without moving. "Maaaaan," she whined.

"Try to focus, May! Remember, it was your brilliant idea that had us look into ninetales more," said Alexa encouragingly.

"Yeah but that was before it became so much _work_," she complained.

Max poked his head behind a shelf. "Quit being so lazy, May."

"Okay fiine." May brightened and headed for the section labeled 'Travel.'

The group split up and looked through as many books as they could. Finally, they all met up at a table to show each other what they found.

Max started them off. "I found a story in this picture book! It's about a lonely Caterpie, but see in this background? There's a Ninetales drawn in the forest."

"Hey that's right," said Ash, squinting at the picture. "That's kinda weird. I wonder how you noticed it." Max looked proud of himself after he said that. "Well I read a bunch of trainers' accounts of Ninetales they ran into on their journeys. They seem to be really smart pokemon and like areas with a lot of grass and trees. Some of these trainers even swore that the Ninetales they encountered were reading their minds...Did you find anything Alexa?"

"I mostly looked through the folk and fairy tale section. There was only one story with a Ninetales in it but it was a fairy tale about a human falling in love with one after it saved her from a near death experience. She begged it to turn her into a pokemon so that she could live with it forever, but it told her telepathically that it is for the best that she remains a human, and then it fled into a forest. They never met again."

"That story is so _romantic_!" exclaimed May. "Ninetales is such a hero!"

"Oh _please_. That story's probably made up anyway," said Max.

"The Ninetales said it telepathically? That matches up with what I found. I know Ninetales are fire type pokemon, but it sounds like they have some psychic powers too," said Ash thoughtfully. "Now that I think about it, I think I ran into a Ninetales once that made illusions..."

"That's a really good observation, Ash," agreed Alexa. "They're definitely special pokemon. What did you find out, May?"

"Well I found this diary of a traveler, who met a Ninetales when he was lost in the Viridian Forest. He can't remember much about what happened, but he found himself mysteriously at the exit after that," said May. "Maybe he was mind-controlled like Ash said!"

"That's not what I said...I said that the trainers thought the Ninetales was _reading _their minds," corrected Ash.

"Well either way, it seems like the fact that Ninetales is found in a forest is the common thread linking everything we found," commented Alexa. "And the best known forest in Kanto is actually the Viridian Forest, so I think it'll be worth checking out." She grinned and then stood up. "I guess we should get going to register for the tournament now. To the car!"

"Helio!" said Helioptile excitedly. Usually it was shy, but it loved the fast speeds of Alexa's car.

* * *

Right outside of the city, there were booths set up for the secret base tournament. A lady at the front gave each member of the group a card. She explained that each card was pre-loaded with 'points' which could be used for purchasing furniture for each group's base. Everyone got to shop in the little bazaar that many furniture merchants set up outside the city with the cards before they set out to start their base, which could be anywhere within a couple hours radius of the city. Teams could compete to refill their points and win special items for their bases throughout the three days before the event was over.

"The event is a little different this year," explained the pink-haired lady. She was wearing a white sundress and holding a parasol so that she wasn't in direct sunlight. A nametag read 'Lyla.' "It used to be that the three days were filled with double-battles to get more furniture, but this year we decided to change it up. The first day is a pokemon soccer event."

"Pokemon soccer?" repeated May.

"It's soccer but with pokemon," said Ash.

"How would you know, did you ever play it?" challenged May.

"No, but, you know..." responded Ash, defeated.

Lyla giggled. "He's right, it is basically soccer but you play with pokemon. The second day is all about foosball, or table soccer, also played in teams with your pokemon. And the third day is double battles! The Pokemon Soccer Association helped sponsor this year's events."

People working at a nearby booth labeled "Pokemon Soccer Association" waved at them at the mention. They were giving out T-shirts to people who passed by.

"If you go to that table over there, you can borrow a pokemon who knows the move 'Secret Power' to help you make your secret base. The pokemon has to be returned by the end of today, though," said Lyla.

"Secret power? My Glaceon knows that move," said May.

"That's great!" replied Lyla, smiling. "Then you can just skip that step. Just sign these papers over here and you're all good to go! Except well...you'll need to come up with a Team name."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that part!" exclaimed Alexa. "Something tells me we might have some trouble coming up with one, so we'll sign the papers in a bit."

The group walked away from the booth to discuss the team name, since they more or less knew that Alexa was probably right in saying that.

"May's Secret Base!" said May instantly.

"Not fair, we can't name it after you! Obviously our team name should be Max's Secret Base!" exclaimed Max.

"Helioptile, helio," disagreed Helioptile.

"Pika pika..." said Pikachu.

"What's that buddy? You want to name our team Super Pikachu? Sounds good to me," said Ash. Pikachu high fived him.

"Why don't we name our team after all of our pokemon?" suggested Alexa.

"Pikachu, Glaceon, and Helioptile, huh..." said Max thoughtfully.

"Glachuptile!" blurted out May. The others laughed.

"I think that's a winner," said Alexa. "What do you guys think? Everyone in agreement with Glachuptile say 'yeah'!"

"YEAH!" said the others, with "Pika!" and "Helio!" mixed in.

After they finished signing papers and officially registered, the group dispersed in the bazaar. They dragged carts with them which they filled with furniture and things they wanted for the secret base.

As they entered the bazaar, May made pretend camera lenses with her fingers, and started to speak as if she was a reporter. "On this special segment of May's Expedition, Team Glachuptile has to make the perfect secret base. Join May and her team of professionals as they pick and choose furniture with only the points they have in these cards."

Alexa giggled and pulled out a headset from her bag. Ash recognized it as the one she used as a camera and a microphone when she was out reporting. The seasoned reporter promptly placed it on May's head and pressed a button. "Here, try this. It'll film what you see and you can even talk on it. Later, I'll show you how to edit everything on my laptop."

"Wooow," breathed May, as she saw the record button. The headset was very advanced and somewhat holographic, a trait that a lot of the technology from Kalos shared. "A-are you sure I can use this, Alexa?"

"Sure! Why don't you record your adventure finding the secret base? If you press these buttons, it'll zoom in and out, and this button records." She pointed out the buttons to May. "May's Expedition sounds like a very fun show!"

"You're _awesome, _Alexa," exclaimed May. She switched to her 'reporter voice' and pressed some buttons to zoom in on her friend. "Thanks to Star Reporter, Alexa, who is a special addition to May's team, our audio and camera equipment is top-notch. Today's adventure is now in high quality!" May giggled and pressed the button to stop recording.

When they were done shopping, they put all the items into a PC. Then they decided to split into teams of two- one team would keep winning furniture, while the other team would pick the location of the secret base and start decorating it.

Max was excited about being able to participate in things with a pokemon, so he insisted on being in the team that kept winning furniture. Since May needed Glaceon to find the base, Pikachu volunteered to help Max out. Ash wanted to pick where they built the base, so he went along with May, leaving Alexa with Max.

* * *

May and Ash wound up walking around the Viridian Forest. May, still wearing the headset, had turned it on and was chatting into it about May's Expedition the whole time. The idea was that they could keep an eye out for Ninetales and have a cool spot in the forest for their base. While they walked, Ash remembered that they actually did run into a kid who made a secret base on their travels in Hoenn. It didn't seem like May remembered that part much, until he mentioned that there was a run-in with Team Aqua and Team Magma as well.

Ash noticed a waterfall which had a ledge that you could walk on behind it. "That's a cool spot for a base. What do you think, May?"

"Sure, let's do it! Glaceon, help us out with Secret Power!" Glaceon used its power to make a cave behind the waterfall. They carefully made their way into the cave and carried in a PC with them which stored all their things.

"This place looks _awesome_!" exclaimed Ash. The cave was reasonably sized, and he was sure that with Glaceon's help, they could even put in rooms for the base.

Using the PC, the two of them started to unpack all of the items.

* * *

Each pokemon soccer game was between two teams. The teams could choose between single matches or tournament style matches. All teams got points on their cards, but the winning teams would get more, and if it was tournament style, the points would stack up higher. The tournament's grand prize was also a huge Wailord plush. Max was confident that their team could win. Helioptile flat out refused to be goalie, but otherwise everyone was pretty agreeable (they all kind of agreed on that one. Helioptile was pretty small and too timid, it did a better job of dodging everything than stopping the soccer ball from scoring).

"And the winner of the final match issss, Team Glachuptile!" announced the MC.

"We did it!" exclaimed Max. He high fived Pikachu. They put their new Wailord plush into the PC. Alexa hoped that Ash and May found a really big secret base, because the plush might take the space of the entire thing...

* * *

"_Wow_, these are so pretty!" exclaimed May, as she unpacked some fancy dresses and suits from the PC. Apparently they had purchased those with their points, but she had forgotten. She hung them on a rack. "This reminds me of the festival we went to! Do you remember it, Ash? We met Lucario there and I danced with this really strange guy..." Unknown to her, she was actually dancing with James from Team Rocket that time, who was scared she'd notice.

"Oh yeah! That was fun! But I didn't get to dance, they made me sit in that chair the _whole _time," grumbled Ash.

"Heeey, why don't we dance right now?" suggested May. "We could put these on and use the stereo that Alexa put in the PC! There's still plenty of space since we didn't finish unpacking stuff."

"Okay," agreed Ash. The stereo played a popular classical song that originated from Lilycove City and the two had fun waltzing to it like they would've during the ball in the castle.

* * *

"What do you think of this match, Alexa?" asked Max, pointing to the pamphlet with all the scheduled matches and prizes.

"Umm...I don't know, do we _really_ need a Wailmer plush too?" she answered uncertainly.

* * *

May had set up a lot of the plushes and paintings. Because of Ash, there were a lot of Pikachu and Butterfree themed merchandise. Alexa's taste seemed to be varied, with some on the practical side. She had made sure to fill the PC with things like shelves and tables and chairs and even a TV. Max had a lot of pokemon books sent over and a lot of interesting plushies.

Ash had run out earlier to let Max and Alexa know where the base was. May asked Glaceon to make the cave deeper, and its Secret Power move had made another room.

"I'm back!" announced Ash. He handed May a flower. "For you!"

May blushed lightly, surprised at the sudden nice gesture. "W-wow. Thank you! It's so pretty!"

"It was growing on the cliff overlooking the waterfall. The view is awesome from there," explained Ash with a gentle smile. "Oh- uh- d-don't worry, there was a whole bunch of 'em growing on a bush so it's okay right?"

She smiled back at him. "Yeah, then we don't have to replant it. That was really thoughtful of you, Ash!"

"Haha..." Ash scratched the back of his head, a little embarrassed.

* * *

Alexa and Max entered the secret base to check out how it was. The events were dying down and even though they didn't win everything, they were proud of how many things they managed to get.

"Wow, it looks great!" exclaimed Max. He jumped onto his giant Wailord plush and sunk into it. Pikachu ran straight to Ash and started talking to him animately.

"You two did a good job on the decorating," said Alexa in approval. She headed toward the TV and sat on a Skitty themed chair in front of it. "May, can I see the headset? I can show you how to edit now."

"Oh, sure!" May took off the headset and handed it to Alexa. Alexa connected her laptop to the TV, and soon she had the things recorded into the headset play on the bigger screen.

"Wow, you almost used all the memory in here..." said Alexa, tapping some keys on the keyboard.

"O-oh, is that bad? Sorry..." mumbled May.

"No no, that's not a problem..." Alexa skipped through some of the video recorded. Ash appeared on the screen in a suit. It was the time both of them danced.

May looked baffled. "I-it was recording that whole time?"

The video kept going, and showed May and Ash eating sandwiches that Max and Alexa had sent over earlier that day.

"I was wondering where all the food we won went!" exclaimed Max. "I can't believe you two! Eating and partying while we were out there winning stuff!"

May and Ash laughed nervously. "Heheh.."


	6. Days 2 & 3! Ninetales Encounter!

Sorry, so this is a day later than I planned to update! Thanks to everyone who's keeping up with the story, hope y'all stick with me. I think it's time I update my Disclaimer too...Anyway this chapter is short, the next one is where more stuff'll happen!

_jojo298- _Aw thanks! I hope you stick with this story though, I know advanceshipping isn't the focus but I'm trying to put more into it! Can you recommend me some advanceshipping fics? That'd be awesome! :D

_Guest- _Sorry you didn't like it, but dude taking the time to write your review?! Ain't nobody got time for that! Hope you find something you like, bro

_link-the-fox - _Thanks for reading & reviewing! Yeaaaahhh sorry for that delay haha Here's the next chapter! Hope you like it :)

_Updated disclaimer:_ I don't own the Pokemon anime or the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series, but please support the official series!

_**Chapter Six: Days 2 & 3! Ninetales Encounter!**_

After spending another night at the hotel, it was time for day 2 of the Secret Base Tournament! This time it was Ash and Alexa decorating, and May and Max doing the table soccer event. Pikachu decided to help out Max again.

"Hey, that Charmander looks familiar..." said Max thoughtfully. A Charmander was hobbling off towards the city.

"Max, quit dazing off and let's go win some plushies!" exclaimed May, tugging him off towards the events.

* * *

"What are those?" asked Ash. Alexa was setting up mats at the entrance of the base. Each mat had a different symbol on them.

"They're trick mats. Every secret base has to have at least one!" said Alexa knowledgeably. "Some can turn you around or make you trip just by stepping on it."

"I don't know how great of an idea this is..." he said, as she continued to lay them out. Just then, May ran in, with Max following suit. May fell flat on her face after stepping on a mat. Ash face-palmed while Max and Alexa shared a laugh.

* * *

Day 3!

Since Day 3 was about battling, there was no way Ash was missing the event. Max wanted to battle too, since he wasn't a trainer and couldn't normally. May let him battle with Glaceon, as she decorated the base with Alexa.

The Ash and Pikachu and Max and Glaceon team didn't lose a single battle. May and Alexa had their hands full finding out places to put everything. It was a good thing they had Glaceon expand the base the day before.

That night, after watching the sunset together, Alexa let the others know that she was looking at the news earlier and tonight was supposed to be a meteor shower. They decided to set up a campfire outside and tell ghost stories until it was time to watch, and they would head to the hotel later.

Soon, the first meteor streaked across the clear night sky, followed by many others.

"I know, let's all make a wish!" exclaimed May. She loved this kind of thing. She closed her eyes and picked a star, and concentrated on her wish. The others did the same. She wished that they could all be happy like this forever.

* * *

After they put out the fire and started walking back towards the path, Max noticed some movement on the cliff overlooking their secret base. He ran up there without telling the others.

"Max, what is it?" asked May, struggling to keep up. They saw a small fire pokemon, a Charmander, sniffing a flower close to the cliff's edge. Max and Ash looked at each other, both thinking the same thing. Wasn't that the same Charmander that helped the Rattata?

The Charmander was close to the edge when suddenly everything shook beneath them. "An earthquake?" said Alexa in surprise. The quake didn't last long, but the Charmander didn't expect it either. It lost its balance and fell off. "Oh no!" Max ran forward and immediately jumped off the cliff to grab onto the Charmander.

"_Max!_" cried out May. As soon as Ash realized what happened, he jumped off the cliff as well to save Max and the Charmander.

Max had just barely managed to keep the Charmander's flame above the water and mostly unscathed, but was quickly getting swept by the current. "Aaah! Help!"

"I'm coming for you, Max!" exclaimed Ash, as he swam as hard as he could to reach them. He was able to hold on to Max and swim towards the bank.

The three of them panted when they were on land again. Ash looked at Max worriedly. "You okay?"

"Yeah...how are you doing, Charmander?" asked Max.

"Chaaaaaar," said Charmander.

Alexa and May reached where they were and were relieved to see that the three of them made it out okay.

May suddenly had an idea, and looked at Charmander closely. Charmander was startled at the proximity of her face. "Char?"

"Do you know where Ninetales is?" demanded May.

"May, the poor thing just went through a lot, give it some space," said Max.

"C-char! Char!" said Charmander, agreeing with Max.

Pikachu stared at the Charmander curiously and walked closer to it. "Pika pika?"

"Char char char," denied Charmander.

This prompted Glaceon, who wasn't in its pokeball the whole time, to walk closer too. "Gla, gla gla...Glaaaaaceon..." Ice surrounded it and looked like it was about to attack.

"Glaceon?" asked May curiously.

"Char?! Charmander char!" Charmander looked terrified, and walked ahead. It looked back at all of them, as if it wanted them to follow. "Char. Char."

Alexa, May, Max, and Ash glanced at each other, and then nodded. Charmander led them deep into the forest, and after many twists and turns, finally reached a clearing. They had no idea the forest was even this big, and lost track of how they'd even find their way back.

* * *

A majestic Ninetales sat in the middle of the clearing under the starlit sky. Alexa gasped when she saw it- she could barely believe that asking Charmander had led to this.

"Ninetales...wow..." said Ash.

"Charmander..." said Charmander. It walked up to the Ninetales and looked like it was explaining. "Charmander char..."

'_Thank you for saving this child. You have my gratitude_,' said a voice in the group's heads. They were all surprised. '_What can I do to repay you?'_

The Charmander was alarmed that Ninetales wanted to help them. "Charmander?! Char char!"

'_Yes, you led them to me as thanks, but there must be a reason that these humans wanted to meet me in the first place_.'

"We-we want to turn into Pokemon," said May timidly. "Y-you can do that right? Without a curse?"

'_You want to become Pokemon? That is a strange request. It might be hard to turn you back into humans again afterwards. Are you sure you want to do this?'_ asked Ninetales.

The group looked at each other, but they were all determined. They weren't sure when they would get this chance again.

"Yes," answered Alexa.

'_Hmm...Maybe it was destiny that led you here..._' The Ninetales closed its eyes. 'I sense that t_he Pokemon world _is_ in danger. Perhaps humans are the key...it's worked before...Very well. I will use my power to turn you into Pokemon. You humans seem trustworthy enough.'_

"Alright!" exclaimed Ash.

'_But first, I believe you have something for me, Charmander_.' The Charmander looked surprised, but pulled out an apple from somewhere and offered it to the Ninetales.

'_Thanks. I was waiting for this. Alright, humans. I will now use my power.' _There was a blinding flash of light and none of them could see anything anymore. At the same time, they felt the earth rumble again and then they were all knocked unconscious.

The Ninetales looked alarmed and took a few steps forward. The others had all disappeared. Well that wasn't supposed to happen like that...

* * *

Ash awoke, and pulled himself up. He felt a lot shorter, and looked down to notice that he had blue paws instead of his hands. His hat lay next to him, and he promptly put it on. He couldn't tell where he was; the area was a little foggy, but he knew that he was still in a forest. There was a pond next to him, and thankfully he could see his reflection in it. He recognized his form as a Riolu.

"Unngh..." A familiar voice groaned. He saw a Plusle pick itself up. "Where am I? Where is everyone? Max? Ash? Alexa?"

"May, come here," said Ash. The Plusle looked confused and stared at him for a minute, until she realized what happened.

"It-it worked! We're pokemon! Wow!" she exclaimed, and then hobbled over to where Ash was, startled as she saw her reflection. "I'm a Plusle!" She was ecstatic.

"Yup, and I'm a Riolu!"

The Plusle noticed her bandana was near her, and picked up the white cloth. She struggled to put it on, but her red paws were too short.

"Here, let me help," offered Ash. He tied it on as carefully as he could, so that it didn't cover her new long ears. "How's that?"

"Thanks, Ash! I hope we can find the others. I can't believe we got separated...I really hope Max is okay..." Her initial joy at becoming a pokemon had turned into worry. She was supposed to be taking care of her little brother, but she let him out of her sight...

"We'll find 'em! They can't be too far," said Ash confidently. "Don't worry, May."

* * *

"_Ouch,_" complained Charmander, rubbing its head in pain. "That Ninetales. He didn't have to send us into a Mystery Dungeon if he was going to make those weird humans into Pokemon. And after I completed the mission and everything..."

"Oh, so is that what happened?" growled Glaceon.

"Aaah! It's that Glaceon again!" Charmander backed away. "I didn't do nuttin', I swear! Please don't hurt me! Look, I know how you trained Pokemon are. Attacking at any poor pokemon that come your way."

"Glaceon wouldn't hurt you unless you annoy him," said a new voice. It was Pikachu. He shrugged. "I was starting to think so before, but you're kinda wimpy."

"Hey, who are you calling a wimp?!" exclaimed Charmander, offended.

Glaceon took a step forward, which caused Charmander to cower. "Look, just help us find our human friends."

"W-why should I help you?"

Glaceon smiled at him, and then let ice surround himself. "What do you think of this reason?"

"Aaah! Okay okay! Don't hurt me! I'll help you find them!" Glaceon looked appeased, while Pikachu looked disgusted. "I-I mean, I run a respectable rescue team. Of course I'll help! Pokemon's honor!"

* * *

"Boy, am I glad to see you!" exclaimed Max, hugging Helioptile. Then he realized that his hands were paws now and they were blue. He turned around and noticed he had a tail with a minus sign. That could only mean one thing. "I'm...a Minun?"

"You're a lot less scary when you're a pokemon," admitted Helioptile. She was still timid, but not as much as before. She handed Max his glasses that she found nearby. He didn't really need them, but he put them on anyway so he wouldn't lose them.

"Hey, there's another pokemon there," said Max curiously. "I've never seen it before. It's a bird pokemon..."

Max and Helioptile walked to the fallen bird pokemon, which began to stir. The bird stood up. It was a pretty looking bird with a red body and a black beak and black and white feathers.

"Helioptile? Is that you?" she asked. They could tell from her voice that it was Alexa.

"Alexa?!" exclaimed Helioptile, surprised. She ran up and hugged her human friend, who wrapped her feathers around her.

"I'm so glad you're alright," said Alexa happily. "Hmm...It seems like I'm a Pokemon. Who's that over there?"

"It's me, Max!" said Max.

"A Minun, huh? I wonder what Pokemon I am..." said Alexa. She tried to look at herself as best as she could, and realized she was some kind of bird pokemon.

"I'm not sure, I've never seen a Pokemon like you before," admitted Max.

"Alexa's a fletchinder," answered Helioptile shyly.

"Oh! Those are native to Kalos," Alexa explained for Max's sake. "They're a dual fire and flying type."

"It's so cool you get to fly, Alexa!" exclaimed Max.

"I still have to get the hang of it," admitted Alexa. She flapped her wings, floating a few feet above the ground. "It _is_ really cool, have to admit." She noticed her headset lay on the ground next to her, and put it on.

"I wonder how May's doin'...We should try to find the others," said Max worriedly.

"But where are we?" wondered Alexa. "It's so foggy and hard to see...It might be dangerous ahead."

"I-I'll walk ahead!" offered Helioptile. "You two need to get used to being pokemon, so I'm the best pokemon for the job!"

"Thanks Helioptile," said Alexa with a smile. "We'll be right behind you!"

* * *

"Max! Glaceon! Alexa!" called out May.

"Pikachu! Helioptile?" called out Ash. The two wondered around, but from what they could tell, they were in some kind of labyrinth. Each path led to a clearing (or room) and sometimes the paths looped around and they found themselves in the room they were in before.

A Weedle jumped out in front of them. He hissed at them and started to attack.

"B-but we didn't do anything!" cried out May, as Ash pulled her away from the attack.

"All the treasure will be mine! Get out of my way!" exclaimed the Weedle. He used String Shot, and the web made them stick to the ground.

"How are we supposed to get out of your way when you do something like that!" retorted Ash, annoyed. It seemed to him that there was no choice but to battle. He tried to think of what moves a Riolu can do. "I know, a quick attack!" Even though he was slowed down by the web, he was able to slam himself against Weedle.

"Be careful, Ash!" exclaimed May, scared.

"May, why don't you try a Thunder Wave?" suggested Ash.

"I-I don't know how to!" said May. She concentrated, and to her surprise, generated a weak spark that she sent towards Weedle. It was enough to paralyze him.

Ash slammed into the Weedle once more.

"Okay, okay! I'll leave you two alone," complained Weedle, weakened.

"S-sorry, Weedle," said May, feeling bad. "Hope you're not too hurt."

"From weak pokemon like you? Nah," responded the Weedle.

"Hey! We're _not _weak!" said Ash, offended.

"Can you tell us where we are?" asked May. "We're a little lost."

"A little lost in a Mystery Dungeon?" The Weedle snorted. "Yeah like I haven't heard that before."

"A mystery dungeon?" repeated May.

"Who let you two goofs in here? A mystery dungeon," repeated Weedle. "It's a mysterious place full of treasure. Usually they're pretty big, too. Other pokemon will attack if you run into them since anything is fair game here. They'll probably take your stuff if they beat you up. Not everyone's nice like me, you know."

"Yeah, I _see_ that. So how do we get out?" asked Ash, with an edge to his voice.

"You have to find the stairs in each floor until you reach the end, duh. Did you grow up under a rock? Maybe you two should send for a rescue team. I doubt you'll make it out on your own," said the Weedle.

"A rescue team?" asked May, confused.

"Look it up! I'm out of here." The Weedle inched his way towards a different path and out of sight.

"That Weedle is _so_ rude. I hope he gets eaten by a Spearow," said Ash, irritated.

"I heard that!" exclaimed Weedle from a distance.


	7. Escape from the Foggy Forest!

_My Comments:_ I don't remember if I mentioned it before, but my characters in Mystery Dungeon all share the same team name "Team Pokeheroes," so the team name that Charmander mentions alludes to that! Also I might update in between weeks with some bonus scenes that occur in between chapters~

Thanks jojo298! I'll be sure to ask you when I get some time to do a lot of reading! Also thanks for reviewing my other story, I'm not even sure if you play Fire Emblem but if you don't you should definitely give it a try :D

_**Chapter Seven: Escape from the Foggy Forest!**_

_Charmander, Glaceon, & Pikachu:_

"Man, this stinks," complained Charmander, walking slightly behind Glaceon and Pikachu. The other two were having fun battling any pokemon that came their way, and had absolutely no trouble whatsoever. Pikachu was slightly more worried than the others and hoped his buddy Ash was fine.

"What are you complaining about _now_?" asked Pikachu.

"I had an appointment with Ninetales before you weirdos had to ruin everything...Now how am I supposed to get my reward..." grumbled Charmander.

"Really? Was that what you were doing up on that cliff?" asked Glaceon with a taunting grin.

"Uh! Look bub, even a prestigious rescue team like myself needs a break now and then!" said Charmander defensively.

"That's been bothering me, actually," said Pikachu. "Shouldn't a pokemon rescue team...have more than one pokemon in it?"

"That's a good point, Pikachu. Are you just lying to us about being a rescue team?" asked Glaceon.

"Wha-no!" sputtered Charmander. "Look, I've just hit some snags in the road! I used to have more members in my rescue team, they all just left because of personal reasons!"

"Hard to imagine anyone putting up with this guy," said Glaceon.

"So you _used_ to be a rescue team," concluded Pikachu.

"I'm still one! It's just going to take some time to be official again, but you'll see!" exclaimed Charmander. "I'm even still getting missions! _Look!_"

He took a paper out of his bag, and showed the other two pokemon a D rank mission to save a Rattata. He looked proud of himself. "I completed that mission all by myself."

"A D rank mission. Wow," said Pikachu, unimpressed.

"It's my dream to start a traveling branch of Team Pokeheroes," said Charmander in a determined tone. "And then everyone will see! Bwahahaha!"

Glaceon and Pikachu exchanged glances.

"What's Team Pokeheroes?" asked Pikachu.

"I guess trained pokemon wouldn't know, but they're known far and wide as one of the highest ranked rescue teams. They even built a Pokemon Paradise!"

"Well good luck with your dream! Come on, Glaceon," said Pikachu, walking in the other direction. Glaceon followed him, without giving another thought to Charmander.

"Hey wait! Guys!" exclaimed Charmander, rushing to keep up with them.

* * *

_Alexa, Max, & Helioptile_

"Wow, Helioptile. You seem like you've done this before," exclaimed Max. With Helioptile's guidance, he and Alexa learned how to use some of their moves. They battled wild pokemon as they went, and had reached the fifth floor (5F) of the dungeon.

"Before I met Alexa, I had a friend who loved exploring mystery dungeons," explained Helioptile in her normal quiet voice. "Sometimes I went with him."

"Really? What kind of pokemon was he?" asked Alexa, eager to learn more about her companion.

"He was also a helioptile," she answered. "We used to have so much fun exploring. But one day he heard rumors about a mystery dungeon that had an incredible treasure inside, so he asked me to go with him."

"What happened then?" asked Max curiously. "Did you get the treasure?"

Helioptile looked a little down. "No...The dungeon had very rough terrain and the pokemon inside were too strong. It was so scary. We were crushed. After that...he didn't want to explore anymore. He was like a shadow of his former self."

"That's horrible..." gasped Alexa.

"After that I knew I had to get stronger. If I was stronger, that would never happen again and I could take him to wherever he wanted to go. So I left to find a trainer," said Helioptile.

"That explains so much..." said Alexa. "When I met you, you looked so small and scared. I was surprised you actually wanted to come along with me. In the end, I'm really glad you did!" She smiled at Helioptile.

Her friend returned the smile. "I am too! You showed me how fun it was to explore and go on adventures again, even if sometimes it's scary. There's always a story waiting to be discovered!"

"Very true," agreed Alexa. "We've really seen a lot of pokemon and stories together, haven't we!"

"Are you ever going to go back to that mystery dungeon?" asked Max.

"That's the plan!" said Helioptile cheerfully. "I'm going to find my friend one day and go back and get that treasure! That is, if no one else got it already. I'm sure he's still moping around in our hometown."

They wandered around, finally making it to the end of the forest, at 9F. They found Pikachu, Glaceon, and Charmander already there waiting. The two groups greeted each other, relieved, except for Charmander who was acting aloof.

"May and Ash still aren't here though..." said Max, somewhat anxiously.

"I'm sure they can make it out," said Pikachu confidently. "Ash isn't just going to give up!"

"It was weird none of us passed them at all..." remarked Helioptile. Mystery Dungeons may change layout every single time a pokemon entered it, but it shouldn't have changed while they were in it. They really must have just missed each other.

"You're a rescue team, aren't you?" growled Glaceon, turning on Charmander. "Why don't you go back in there and do some actual rescuing?!"

"I'm not going back in there!" said Charmander, alarmed. "Did you see how many floors there were?! How much walking do you think I can do in a day?!"

Pikachu groaned. "Pathetic..."

"Besides, if we go back now, we'll start from the first floor. That's just how mystery dungeons work," pointed out Charmander. "They'll probably make it out by the time we're halfway!"

"Well, but if we all go I'm sure we'll find-" started Alexa.

"_No way!_" exclaimed Charmander. "Look, there's too many of us for that. You're only supposed to have four pokemon in your team, five at the max. If you have any more, the pokemon rescue team association will be on our backs. I can't be on their radar right now!"

"How would this association even know?" asked Max.

"They'll _know_," insisted Charmander.

"We could just leave you," suggested Pikachu. Glaceon nodded in agreement.

Charmander huffed and crossed his arms. "If you get in trouble in there, what are you going to do? I'm the one with the rescue badge. I say we wait for them to come out."

"I second that," said Helioptile quietly.

"Finally, some sense around here!" exclaimed Charmander. Helioptile blushed in embarrassment and looked away.

"But my sister could be in trouble!" said Max. "We can't just sit around and do nothing! What if Ash isn't even with her?"

They were all quiet at that.

"If too much time passes and they still haven't come out, we'll go after them," said Glaceon. "I'm worried about May too, but we'll have to trust in her."

"It'll be okay, Max. I'm sure your sister is fine," said Alexa comfortingly.

* * *

_Ash and May- 5F_

"Today's May's Expedition is a rocky one. Our heroes have turned into pokemon, but have all gotten separated." May's voice rose in pitch as she went along. Her fake camera lens didn't quite work with her paws, but she held them up anyway. "Reporter May has no idea if her brother's okay or not, and for all we know could _be stuck in this labyrinth forever and never find out_!"

"Uhmmm.." Ash was very worried about her. He was doing his best to stave off the wild pokemon and always made sure that she didn't stray far from his side. He managed to figure out how to use his pokemon moves through instinct and what he remembered when dexing a Riolu on one of his journeys. May tried to send weak shocks to enemy pokemon, but she was too scared and worried so as a result many times her moves would fail.

She lowered her paws and sniffed. Her eyes had started watering. "What if we can't find them? This is all my fault. I shouldn't have brought Max along. I-I just thought w-we could have fun. I-I p-promised Mom and Dad I'd t-take care of him..."

"May." Ash stopped walking. He knew about her promise already, and how close the two siblings were. He'd do anything in his power to reunite them and make sure they were both safe. He wiped a stray tear from the Plusle's face with his paw. "Max will be okay. We're going to find him and the others, alright?" He gave her a gentle, reassuring smile. "I'm sure they'll be waiting for us at the end of this dungeon. Just trust me."

"Y-yeah. You're right..." she murmured, gaining some strength from his words. She was so glad he was with her at that moment.

Ash was just relieved she was feeling a little better. He held out one of his paws for her to hold. In a soft voice he said, "Come on, let's get out of here together. Everything will be fine. I'm right here beside you."

She took his paw and they continued through the dungeon just like that. Her scared feelings melted away and she started to believe that everything would be fine and Max and the others had already gone through.

* * *

_Ash and May- 9F_

The two pokemon were very tired as they reached the ninth floor. The fog was still thick so they weren't sure how much further until they were out of the dungeon. They saw a pond so they headed to it to get a quick drink and refresh. Both Ash and May were feeling stronger and more confident about their moveset and were able to work well together to fight off wild pokemon.

While they drank from the pond, a Caterpie and a Metapod were moving full speed ahead towards them.

"AAAHH run for your life!" exclaimed Caterpie, spotting the Riolu and Plusle.

"W-what's going on?" stammered May. The Caterpie and Metapod stopped at the pond to speak to them.

"You two better run," advised Metapod. "We were just minding our business in our favorite tree, when there was an earthquake! Then Graveler came out of nowhere and started raging and attacking everything, even our tree!"

"When we ran away, Graveler started ta follow us. He'll be here any minute! He's super angry. If you twose know what's good for ya, ya better run!" said Caterpie, before he began to flee again with Metapod.

"A Graveler?" repeated May in a high pitched voice. She may not have been a pokemon long, but as a trainer she knew that her being an electric type against a rock type was not looking good. Even worse, Graveler was an evolved pokemon so it would be even stronger. "S-should we run too?"

"But then we'll be going backwards! We need to get out of here. If Graveler comes, we'll take him on," said Ash, in a determined voice. "There's nothing else we can do!"

"I guess you're right...Let's keep going forward," she said. Ash led the way as she clung on to his arm.

"RAAARGHHH," bellowed a loud voice. Just as Caterpie and Metapod said, Graveller was hot on their trail and appeared before Ash and May. "You two messin' with me too? I'll CRUSH YOU!"

"Oh yeah? Well I'm not about to let that happen!" exclaimed Ash. "You better calm down!"

"Please let us through! We just want to leave the forest," chimed in May.

Graveller angrily slammed a mighty fist on the ground. "I don't care what you dopes want to do!" He didn't want to talk any longer and started to attack.

"May, get behind me! We'll take him on like the others!" ordered Ash, forming a strategy in his mind. Like May, he realized that they were at the disadvantage because Graveler was evolved, but he wasn't going to give up without a fight. They needed to get out of here and figure out their next move on how to reunite with the others so he wasn't going to let anyone or anything stand in his way.

"Right!" said May. She immediately used her 'Helping Hand' move to power up Ash's attack power. Ash thanked her gratefully. Since he was a fighting type, the type advantage and the power up might be just what they needed to balance out the edge Graveler had with the evolution.

Before Ash could do anything, Graveler started to roll around in his 'Roll-out' attack. He couldn't see as he rolled, but it seemed as if he was aiming for May. She was able to dodge in time because of his low accuracy.

"Argh, if he moves like that it's hard for me to land a hit..." muttered Ash. He had tried to execute a 'Force Palm' attack, but to no avail. He glanced at May, and they both nodded at each other.

May moved off to the side, as Ash tried to distract Graveler. He baited Graveler away from the clearing they were in and into the trees, where the boulder-like pokemon's movement was restricted. The rock pokemon angrily tried to hit the Riolu, but it got stuck between two trees.

May took this opportunity to use a 'Thunder Wave,' which paralyzed Graveler. Ash then dragged his palm forward and backward on his opponent, causing damage with 'Force Palm.' The two of them took turns paralyzing and dealing damage, so that Graveler never had a chance to move.

"Urgh...okay...I give up. You two win. Lemme out of these trees, will ya?" said Graveler finally.

"And why should we do that?" asked Ash suspiciously. Their opponent was weakened, but he wasn't convinced he would angrily rage at them again.

"I won't attack anymore, I promise. Please help me out of here, I'm stuck," admitted Graveler.

Ash shared a look with May. If it was okay with her, then maybe they'd let him out.

She shrugged. "I don't think he can do anything to us now, we might as well help him out."

The two of them went behind Graveler and pushed as hard as they could.

"You two call that a push? My grandma can do better than that!" exclaimed Graveler.

"Are you serious?!" grumbled Ash. "You sure we should help this guy, May?"

"Um, well, maybe his grandma is a Golem so it really wouldn't be a problem for her," she said with a half smile, imagining an old Golem with a cane pushing Graveler out with one hand.

"Huh..." Ash was a little mystified at her good mood.

"Quit yappin' and push already!" snapped Graveler. His tone was really irritating Ash, who took a few steps and then slammed into him. Graveler popped out from the trees and landed in a plop.

"HEY! You didn't have to use a Tackle! Show some manners!" said Graveler ungratefully.

"_Who's_ not showin' manners!" responded Ash angrily. "Last I checked, you were the one who attacked _us!_"

"Why did you attack us, anyway?" asked May.

Graveler stood up as decently as he could and brushed himself off. "I was at home in my cave nearby when the ground started shaking out of nowhere. That quake woke me up from my nap. I get cranky and want to crush things when I don't get enough sleep. Look, I'm actually a really decent guy when I get my full twelve hours."

"Does your _grandma_ think so?" asked Ash snidely.

Graveler missed his tone completely and grinned. "Oh yeah, Grandma says I'm the sweetest rock pokemon in the area! You two are alright! See ya around!" He hobbled off.

"A _sorry_ would be nice," grumbled Ash.

"Uh...I think that _was _his sorry," admitted May. "Well he certainly was an honest pokemon."

Soon the fog started to lighten a little as they began walking forward again. To their relief, they saw familiar faces- Pikachu, Glaceon, and Charmander. They also recognized Alexa's headset and Max's glasses right away, and ran forward to meet them.

"_Max! _Max, that's you right?" exclaimed May, heading straight for the Minun.

"May!" The Minun ran into the Plusle's arms and hugged her.

"I'm so glad you're okay, Max! I was so worried," said May, patting the Minun's head. She hugged Glaceon happily next, who was also very relieved to reunite with her.

At the same time, Pikachu and Ash hugged. "Good to see you're doing fine, buddy!" said Ash.

"Same here, I knew you could make it through!" exclaimed Pikachu. Ash smiled, happy he was able to understand everything his best friend was saying. They exchanged a few words about their experiences, and then Ash turned his attention to the others.

"So that's Helioptile and you must be Alexa..." he said uncertainly, as he didn't recognize the bird pokemon.

"Yup, I'm a pokemon from Kalos," explained Alexa. She brought Ash and May up to speed about what a fletchinder was. "Thanks to Helioptile, we didn't have too much trouble. I'm still trying to get the hang of using Pokemon moves."

"I got pretty good at using Growl attack!" bragged Max cheerfully.

"That's great, Max!" said Ash encouragingly. Max beamed at him.

"Yeah, yeah, this is a great reunion with you guys. Can we hurry it up? Let's go to town already, I've been waiting on these poor tired feet for ages! Thanks for taking a year to come through by the way," complained Charmander.

"Are...you crying?" asked Pikachu. Charmander turned around and hid his face, but not without a loud sniff.

"No! Who do you take me for!" snapped Charmander.

Pikachu and Glaceon exchanged a glance. Pikachu stepped forward and patted Charmander's shoulder awkwardly. "There, there." Unfortunately for the mouse, this just prompted Charmander to start bawling.

"Because you all thought the human girl couldn't maaaake it," he sobbed. "But she did! It's such a happy momeeeeent!"

May gestured to herself in confusion. Alexa reluctantly nodded at her.

"You...all thought I wouldn't make it back?" said May dully.

"HEY! I wasn't just going to leave May!" said Ash indignantly. May felt warm as he said that, and unconsciously slipped her paw into his again. He protectively tightened his grip.

"We didn't know you two were together," explained Max.

"Good thing we're all safe," said Glaceon. "You done crying, Charmander?"

"I-I'm not crying!" hiccuped Charmander.

"Whatever you say," said Pikachu, still patting his shoulder.

"What about that town you mentioned, Charmander?" asked Alexa. "I think we can all use a rest."

"Yes, please take us there," said Helioptile.

"O-okay -hic-. Follow me," said Charmander. He composed himself and then took a step forward. "Pikachu, do you have a thing for my shoulder or something? Sheesh!"

Pikachu looked stunned as Charmander walked ahead. "...Jerk."

Ash gave Pikachu a sympathetic look. "Don't feel bad, buddy. I've met a ton of those types today myself."


	8. Are you okay, Helioptile?

_My Comments: _Sorry for the lateness! I had this chapter ready last week but I wasn't happy with it so I didn't post it right away. I think (hope) it turned out okay this time. I might be getting very busy in the upcoming month so updates will probably be slower but I'll try to update when I can! I do have a plot outline so I definitely know how it's going to end and plan on finishing the story no matter what. Thanks jojo298 for the continued support :D Always appreciated!

_**Chapter Eight: Are you okay, Helioptile?**_

"Wooow!" Both Max and May were amazed at the pokemon town. They giggled and pointed at everything in excitement. The town was made up of interconnected treehouses. Some of these were stores and had counters where some Pokemon were open for business. There was also an inn at the center of town and a town square in front of it, where many pokemon lounged around. Behind the inn, at the foot of the tallest tree was a clearing with a beautiful flower garden. Everyone climbed a ladder to enter the town.

Charmander panted. He was living in this town for some time now, but it still tired him out because of all the ladders.

"You really need to get in shape," remarked Glaceon.

"Yeah, yeah," muttered Charmander grumpily.

Ash read the sign at the town's entrance. "Primeape town, huh?" He recalled the Primeape he briefly trained and hoped he was doing alright.

"I can't wait to get to the inn! I'm beat," admitted Alexa. She didn't have to climb the ladder since she was a flying type, and had glided up there with Helioptile on her back. Pikachu was a little jealous, because normally he would ride Ash instead of climb, but now the two were roughly the same size.

"Where do you stay, Charmander?" asked Max curiously. "Do you have a house here?"

Charmander shook his head. "No. I don't have enough Poké yet, but I'm working on getting enough for a rescue team base."

"What's Poké?" asked Ash.

"It's the money we use in Pokemon towns," explained Helioptile. She took out a coin to show him. "They look like this. You probably passed some in the mystery dungeon."

"Oh that's right! We saw a lot of those," said Ash. "But we didn't have anything to carry them in so we left them there."

"It was the same for me, Alexa, and Max," agreed Helioptile. "We can get bags to carry items in if we all register as a rescue team. For now, we'll need some poké to stay at the inn."

"But...We don't have any poké..." said May worriedly.

"I'm sure we can work something out with the innkeeper," said Alexa.

"Yeah, it's not like we can count on Charmander anyway," remarked Pikachu.

"I ain't letting you freeloaders mooch off of me!" exclaimed Charmander.

"Talk about hotheaded," grumbled Pikachu.

* * *

The inn was run by a Nidoking and Nidoqueen couple and their daughter, a the group walked in, the Nidoran at the counter screamed, "MOM! WE HAVE CUSTOMERS!"

Nidoqueen came from the back, where the kitchen was. "Thanks, dear," she said. "Hello, welcome to Nidoqueen Inn. I'm surprised we have so many guests tonight! What with all the earthquakes going on. I hope you all didn't run into too much trouble. Graveler was just telling me his house caved in and checked in!"

"No way, she can't be talking about _that_ Graveler can she?" Ash asked May. She shrugged. He was really not looking forward to being under the same roof as the rock pokemon.

"Oh and I see you've come again tonight, Charmander. Welcome back!" said Nidoqueen.

"We were wondering if we can get a room here," said Alexa. "We don't have poké but we'll earn some and pay you back as soon as we can!"

"Oh, of course, dear!" said Nidoqueen. "Charmander's run up quite the tab himself!"

Nidoking emerged from the back kitchen. "You're too nice, honey. We're running a business!"

"But dear, we can't just cast them aside. They'll earn the poké when they can. They all look like trustworthy pokemon," insisted Nidoqueen. Glaceon and Pikachu simultaneously wondered what she saw in Charmander.

Nidoking sighed. "If you say so, honey. You know I can't ever say no to you anyway. Nidoran, can you help me in the kitchen?"

"Okay dad!" exclaimed the little Nidoran. She went into the backroom with her father.

Nidoqueen smiled at all of them. "There are rooms for all of you upstairs so go on up when you're ready. My name is Nidoqueen and my husband's name is Nidoking, so call us if you need anything at all!"

"Thanks so much!" exclaimed Alexa. "So guys, what do you want to do?"

"I wanna see the town!" said Max excitedly. His sister quickly agreed with him.

Ash yawned. "I'm beat, but I've never been in a pokemon town before. I'm going for a quick look before bed."

"Yeah, I was thinking along the same lines! Now that we have a place to stay, I'm up for a little exploration myself!" agreed Alexa.

The others decided to stay at the inn and relax, so it was just the human-turned pokemon that ended up going out one more time. They talked to some of the locals in the square, including a Beedrill, a Spearow, and a Caterpie. The locals were surprised to see such a strange mix of pokemon, but were very friendly and welcomed them to Primeape town.

* * *

"These flowers are really something! I don't think I've ever seen these before!" exclaimed Alexa. The group found their way eventually to the field, which was the pride and joy of Primeape town.

"Too bad Pikachu was too tired to come, he'd love this place!" said Ash, happily. Some Butterfree were flying together further in the field, also enjoying themselves.

"Flowers..." May looked at the field blankly, and then suddenly remembered something. "Flower! My bag! Oh no!" she panicked.

"What's wrong, May?" asked Max.

"I-I don't have my bag. The flower Ash gave me was in there..." She said, a little bummed out. "Oh and all my other stuff," she added, as an afterthought.

"Haha, you're worried about that? It's just a flower, May. I can get you another one," said Ash lightly.

"Hmm..." The bird pokemon looked like she was concentrating on something. "Max. That's weird though, isn't it?" The Minun looked startled being suddenly addressed, and looked at Alexa curiously. "Why are all of our clothes and personal items not with us when we transformed into pokemon? Yet we have some things like my headset and your glasses."

"Wow, you're right, Alexa! That _is we_ird. And my glasses fit perfectly too," agreed Max. "D'you think Ninetales is taking care of our stuff?"

"I think so. Maybe it's because we didn't actually need any of those things as Pokemon," speculated Alexa.

While Alexa and Max were discussing this, Ash had picked another flower. He wrapped the stem around May's wrist and made a knot, making it into a bracelet. "Here you go, May~"

The Plusle blushed and smiled happily. "Wow, thanks Ash! It's so pretty!" She wanted to thank him somehow. Through her new instinct as a pokemon she ended up doing something she normally wouldn't do as a human. She nuzzled the Riolu's cheek with hers and unintentionally, sparks came out and shocked him.

"Aaaaawwwww," groaned Ash, as he became paralyzed.

"Wow! So May knows Nuzzle attack!" remarked an amused Max.

"Yeaaahhh. It's pretty effective," said a fried Riolu. "But that means you know it too, Max!"

"Yeah, but I'm not gonna go around nuzzling anyone like my sister," commented Max. "I'll stick to Thunder Wave, thanks."

"S-sorry Ash! I didn't mean tooo," panicked May. She didn't even know she could do that attack. "It was an accident!"

"It's o-kaaaaay," he managed, still sparking.

"Come on, Ash. I'll take you back to the inn," offered Alexa. "Are you alright enough to grab on?" She helped the Riolu climb onto her back.

"Sorry Ash!" insisted May, feeling bad about it.

"I'll just sleep it off, it's fine May~" he said to reassure her. "Thanks for the help, Alexa."

"No problem! We're ready for take-off, HQ!" Alexa grinned at Max, who took his queue.

"In 3-2-1...Blast off!" exclaimed Max. Alexa soared through the sky. The night breeze felt great and even though he was paralyzed, Ash was enjoying the flight.

* * *

Max and May hung back at the garden a little longer. They sat down next to each other on a tree stump, idly watching the Butterfree dance to the moonlight.

"Max? I'm...sorry I didn't take you to Johto with me," confessed May.

"Huh? Where did that come from?" asked Max.

"The truth is...I was remembering that contest in Olivine City. Remember? You snuck out of the house and came all the way to see me compete."

"Yeah...I'm sorry, May. You had to go all the way to port to meet me and almost missed it..." Max looked down to hide his face, feeling tears starting to come out. He had felt like such a burden that day but he had missed her so much.

"Oh, Max." May patted her brother on the head. "I'd miss a hundred contests for you!"

"R-really?" Max looked up. "You didn't think I was a pain?"

"Of course I didn't! You're my brother!" She giggled and wiped his tears away. "You wanna know something? I really missed you, too. Seeing you at port that time, it made me so happy. I'm going to remember you smiling and waving from that ship for the rest of my life! You're more important to me than one silly contest. Why do you think I called home so often?"

"I thought it was just because you missed Mom's cooking..." mumbled Max.

"Well, I missed that too! You wanna know a secret? Right before you called and said you were coming, I was going to make a ticket for home. I wanted to give everything up right then and there. What was the point if I wasn't with my best friends and my favorite brother?"

"I'm your _only_ brother," pointed out Max.

"Yeah, and I couldn't have asked for a better one! After you came, I really felt like I had the strength to keep going. Seeing you off was the saddest thing ever, but I thought that time that if you stayed I'd rely on you too much," admitted May.

"But that's what brothers and sisters are for! We're supposed to rely on each other!" said Max. "I really wanted to be there for you in Johto and cheer you on, but I thought you didn't want me there..."

May smiled softly at him. "Sounds like we were both wrong. Remember when I called Mom and Dad to tell them where you were? They were worried _sick!_"

"Haha, yeah. I'm never going to forget their reaction for as long as I live." The two of them laughed at the memory.

"It really meant the world to me that you came to see me. Thanks, Max. I love you, little brother~"

"You're so sappy sometimes!...I love you too, sis." The Plusle and Minun fell asleep on the stump, leaning on each other's shoulders.

Later that night, Pikachu found the two sleeping on the stump. He had been worried when they had never come back. He smiled at the two siblings sleeping peacefully and then put blankets over them, before making his way back to the inn.

* * *

'_Max. Maaaa-aaax'_

_Max couldn't make out the blurred figure that appeared before him. It was a familiar voice, but he couldn't place who it was. But the voice made him feel happy somehow, like he was reuniting with an old friend._

'_Max. Maax,' it continued to call._

"Max! Wake up," said May, shaking her brother awake.

"Uhnn..." Her brother finally awoke, and groggily looked up. It took him a moment to gather his bearings. He remembered that they had become pokemon, and that the Plusle before him was his sister. "Dream..."

"What's that? Did you say something, Max?" asked May, trying to adjust her bandana a little.

"I had a dream but I can't remember it," he murmured. All he could remember was that it wasn't a normal dream, and for some reason he felt like it was important.

"I can't believe we fell asleep here. Someone nice brought us blankets too!" exclaimed May, not even listening to her brother. "Let's go back to the inn! I hope there's something yummy there for breakfast!"

Max sighed. Once a meal was involved, that was all that mattered to his sister. He followed her back to the inn.

* * *

May and Max made it to the inn, where they found Ash, Glaceon, Pikachu, Alexa, and Charmander at the lobby, since they had all just finished eating breakfast. They greeted everyone with a cheerful 'good morning.'

Helioptile came down after the two entered, but after she descended the stairs, she almost collapsed, surprising everyone. Alexa glided to her side instantly, and helped the small electric lizard pokemon lean on her.

"Helioptile?! What's wrong?" she asked anxiously.

"I'm not feeling so good..." answered Helioptile, breathing heavily. "I don't know why...just woke up like this.."

"This isn't good," said Alexa. "Is there any medicine around here? Anyone that can help?"

Nidoking, who had seen what happened while he was clearing the table, spoke up, "I've never seen a pokemon get sick like that all of a sudden. We should give her a Sitrus berry right away, that should help. Problem is, we used the last of our supply on the soup."

"Where can we get some more?" asked Ash.

Nidoking rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "If you're lucky, Meowth's Bargains has some in stock. Meowth changes his inventory everyday."

"Helioptile, please hang in there! I'll go to Meowth right away. Where is his store?" asked Alexa in a determined tone.

"He's very close, turn left at the first tree stump and up the ladder. Mention my name to him and he should give it to you," said Nidoking.

"I'll take care of Helioptile and help her back to bed," offered Pikachu.

"Thanks, Pikachu! I'll leave it to you!" said Alexa gratefully. The others nodded and headed out of the inn.

* * *

When they arrived at Meowth's Bargains storefront, the counter was empty. This puzzled Charmander, who knew Meowth to never take a day off. His rigidity for rules was something the fire pokemon was never a fan of. Especially when it concerned the words 'paying' and 'back.' "Meowth? Meeeeeooowth?" called Charmander. "Funny, you think you know a guy."

"What does that mean?" asked Glaceon.

"Yeah, were you friends?" asked Max curiously.

"I wouldn't say _friends_," said Charmander. This made Glaceon snort.

"There's a sign here," observed Ash, spotting a wooden sign.

"What's it say?" asked May.

Max rolled his eyes. "You could read it, you know."

"What_ever _Max!" May stuck her tongue out at her brother.

Ash ignored them. "Out sick..." he read. "I guess Meowth came down with something too..."

"Oh no...There has to be another way to get those berries," said Alexa. "Let's go back to the inn and ask Nidoking if there's anyone else who can help."

* * *

"Meowth's sick? I'll have to send Nidoran to look out after him. That poor Meowth doesn't have any family to take care of him here," said Nidoking. "But that's very strange of him. He's usually working even when he has a high fever!"

"Maybe he's in as bad of a condition as Helioptile," suggested Alexa. "We can pick up some Sitrus berries for him, too. Can you tell us where we can find some?"

Nidoking paced a little. "You can find a lot of them in the Windy Clearing. That's a mystery dungeon a little ways from here. But it won't be easy. The pokemon there are tough."

"I can take them on," said Glaceon confidently.

"Now hold on just a minute! We have to go through a mystery dungeon? With no reward offered?" asked Charmander, appalled.

Pikachu hopped down the stairs, and heard his comment. "Isn't getting the Sitrus berries reward enough?"

Charmander turned around to face the electric mouse, and crossed his arms across his chest. "Maybe for you underachievers, but I don't do well without getting poké. It's not like you all have any. _And_ we have to bring some back for Meowth, too. What's in it for me? Someone better pay up."

"Oh nooo!" squeaked May. "What if Charmander's a Pokemon mafia boss so he needs poké or else?

Ash glanced at her worriedly, and Max just smacked his head with his paw.

"Someone get my sister some breakfast," Max remarked.

Pikachu grabbed an apple from the table and handed it to May wordlessly. She looked at him with stars in her eyes and exclaimed "I love you so much Pikachu~"

Pikachu was embarrassed and rubbed the back of his head. "No problem May."

Alexa sighed. "We'll find some way to pay you back, Charmander. Will you help us out, please? As I recall, you're the one with the rescue team badge. It's probably not a good idea to go into the mystery dungeon without it..."

"Well...actually I have two," admitted Charmander. "D-don't tell the association! I'm only telling you guys. You have to swear on your mother's grave you won't tell!"

Pikachu rolled his eyes. "Okay whatever. So if you're not going, can we have one?"

"No way! I'm going! I can't just let you hooligans go off with a rescue badge in MY name. Okay look." Charmander looked around to see if anyone was listening. Nidoking was telling his daughter something and Nidoqueen was in the back making more food. He knew Graveler left a while back to do his day job. He motioned the other pokemon to come closer in a huddle. "If we send out two teams, we can get twice the Sitrus berries and twice the amount of poké."

"How would we split the teams?" asked Glaceon.

"Well someone should probably stay behind to take care of Helioptile," said Pikachu.

"I'll do that," said Alexa. The others nodded at her.

"Okay so this is what I was thinking. I'll be on a team with Glaceon and Pikachu since they're pretty strong. The weaklings go on the other team."

"HEY!" Ash was offended.

"It's too late, I'm the leader and what I say goes! HA!" said Charmander.

Pikachu patted Ash's shoulder in sympathy. "I don't think you're weak, buddy."

Ash sighed. "Yeah...thanks, buddy."

"So since I'm obviously the leader of this team, who's the leader for you guys?" asked Charmander. "I have an extra bag and team badge. But remember you can't breathe a word to the association."

"Can I be leader? Pleeeease?" Max asked the other two.

"I guess," said May, who didn't care either way.

Ash gave him a huge smile. "Sure, Max!"

"Yay, thanks guys!" said the Minun happily.

Max outstretched his palms to accept the bag and team badge, and Charmander was about to give them up but then withdrew. "Wait. Spin around and say 'I'm a Mankey' three times and you can have them. It's an initiation ritual."

"Huh? Um...okay..." said Max. Pikachu and Glaceon shot a "Really?!" look at Charmander as Max started to spin around. May and Ash were covering each other's mouths so that they wouldn't laugh out loud.

"I'm a Mankey...I'm a Mankey...I'm a Mankey...Okay done! Can I have them now?" asked Max enthusiastically.

"Well part two is wearing the bag over your head and shouting Torchic across town," said Charmander. "And then you're in a rescue team!"

"I'm not sure if you're messin' with me..." said Max suspiciously.

Glaceon smiled at Charmander, and let ice surround himself. "Why don't we skip the rest of the initiation process?"

Charmander felt chills go up and down his spine, literally. "Okay okay! Here, Max. You're a new team leader." He gave Max the bag and rescue badge.

"Wow cool! We're a rescue team, you guys~" said Max to Max and Ash.

The teams made their way to Windy Clearing, and split up when they entered the dungeon...


End file.
